President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo issued a stark warning on Friday regarding the potential catastrophic impacts of climate change, emphasizing that it could drive the world into severe hunger. Addressing senior government officials in Jakarta, Jokowi underscored the necessity for Indonesia to install more water pumps to mitigate the risk of food shortages and maintain economic stability.

Highlighting the importance of a robust water pump system, Jokowi stressed that such infrastructure would be instrumental in controlling inflation, which stood at 2.84 percent as of May. He echoed the concerns of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who recently cautioned that the world is on the brink of a "climate hell" due to rising temperatures. Jokowi projected that by 2050, approximately 50 million farmers globally could face water scarcity for their crops, leading to widespread food shortages if no action is taken.

"Let’s not play games when it comes to drought and heat waves. It is a matter of human life. Production is set to decline because of the heat waves and if we don’t take care of the water problem. Then our [food] supply will drop, followed by rising prices and inflation. We need to watch out for this, and plan well because it is our people who become the victims," Jokowi stated.

The Indonesian leader revealed that he had directed his government to prioritize the installation of water pumps, particularly in rice-producing regions. "I have urged them to immediately set up water pumps. We will install around 20,000 water pumps in areas which mainly produce rice, but not limited to rice," he said, explaining that these pumps would channel river water into paddy fields.

Central Java, already equipped with around 1,400 water pumps, is expected to see an increase in installations. Despite Indonesia having constructed 43 out of the targeted 61 dams during Jokowi's decade-long presidency, he asserted that additional efforts were necessary.

"We must make sure that this water flows into the paddy fields. There should be primary, secondary, and even tertiary irrigation. So we can help boost its production and keep the inflation from rising," Jokowi emphasized.

According to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), Indonesian rice production declined by 1.39 percent year-on-year to 31.1 million tons in 2023, a decrease attributed to the El Nino climate phenomenon. In response, Agricultural Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman announced that his ministry would reallocate Rp 7 trillion ($427.5 million) from its total budget to support strategic crop production, with a portion of the funds earmarked for purchasing water pumps. Indonesia aims to produce 32 million tons of rice in 2024.