JAYAPURA - The Papua Provincial Government encourages farmers in Keerom Regency to plant chili to suppress the scarcity that causes inflation in the region.

According to the Assistant Secretary of Papua for Economy and People's Welfare, Setyo Wahyudi, the scarcity of chili peppers in Keerom Regency is the attention of the Ministry of Home Affairs that must be resolved immediately.

Therefore, he appealed to the local government to encourage farmers to plant chili, especially on land where commodity production is not optimal.

"Keerom farmers do not grow many chilies. Some grow rice and vegetables so we encourage planting chili peppers on land where production is not optimal," he explained in Jayapura, Monday (12/8/2024).

According to Setyo, inflation in Papua is generally under control. However, his party also pays attention to shallot commodities in several regions that contribute to inflation.

"But for areas where there is an increase in shallots, there are other areas that also have advantages (that can cover). For example, Keerom Regency, which also experiences a scarcity of certain commodities, will harvest and cover the area that is lacking," he concluded.

It is known that inflation in Papua is still in a stable position despite a decline nationally, from 17th to 16th of Indonesia in July 2024.

Meanwhile, the Papua Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported that in July 2024, there was year-on-year inflation in Papua Province of 0.91 percent with a Consumer Price Index (CPI) of 10.42. ***