Rice Field Area in the Greater Jakarta Agglomeration Shrinks in 2024

Analysis of Google satellite imagery conducted by the Institute for Demographic and Poverty Studies (IDEAS) shows that the paddy field area in the Jabodetabek agglomeration, plus Cianjur, Karawang, Cilegon, and Serang, reached 296,871 hectares (ha) in 2024.

According to IDEAS, this area is estimated to have shrunk by 77,711 ha compared to the 2019 baseline paddy field area (LBS) of 374,582 ha, as per the Decree of the Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/National Land Agency (ATR/BPN) No. 686/SK-PG.03.03/XII/2019.

Of the lost area, almost all of it occurred in 6 agglomeration districts that are centers of paddy cultivation, namely:

1. Bekasi Regency: 21,027 ha
2. Cianjur Regency: 13,809 ha
3. Bogor Regency: 12,956 ha
4. Karawang Regency: 8,823 ha
5. Serang Regency: 8,571 ha
6. Tangerang Regency: 6,824 ha

Meanwhile, the area that did not experience land shrinkage is Bogor City, which increased by 15 ha from 86 ha in 2019 to 102 ha in 2024, as shown in the table above.

“Throughout 2019-2024, Bekasi (Regency) lost 21,027 ha of paddy fields, equivalent to a paddy field conversion rate of 8.70% per year,” IDEAS wrote in its report.

IDEAS explained that the loss of 77,711 ha of paddy fields resulted in the share of paddy field area relative to the total area of the agglomeration plummeting by 5.5%, from 26.3% in 2019 to 20.8% in 2024.