On 21-22 November 2024, the inception workshop for the Phase II Pilot Project on Integrated Straw Management was held in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Dr. Ir. Haris Syahbuddin, Executive Secretary of the Indonesian Agency for Agricultural Instrument Standardization (IAAS), Ministry of Agriculture; Mr. Agung Prabowo, Director of the Indonesian Center for Agricultural Mechanization Standard Testing (ICAMEST) of IAAS, Ministry of Agriculture; and Ms. Patricia Wong Bi Yi, Programme Officer, Centre for Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization (CSAM); delivered opening remarks at the Inception Workshop of Phase II Pilot Project on Integrated Straw Management in Indonesia. They emphasized the significance of the pilot project in showcasing viable mechanization solutions to address straw burning in Indonesia and the region, and reaffirmed the collective commitment of Indonesia and CSAM to ensuring the success of the project over the next four years.

 
Additionally, CSAM’s broader regional initiative on integrated straw management and the technical interventions, implementation models and outcomes of the pilot project in China were presented. Representatives from the Gadjah Mada University shared the experiences and results of the Phase I Pilot Project in Indonesia (2021-2023)  and the work plan for Phase II of this project. Representatives from two new pilot sites were consulted, providing valuable feedback and suggestions on the planned activities, while also discussing the specific challenges they face in utilizing straw.

     
As part of the inception workshop, the team visited the Indonesian Center for Agricultural Mechanization Standard Testing (ICAMEST), which is the lead implementing agency of the Phase II pilot project. At ICAMEST, local farmers from the pilot sites shared their current practices of straw utilization and discussed specific needs and support that they require. It is clear from the discussions that agricultural extensions workers play a key role in communicating the needs of local farmers and in facilitating the adaptation of agricultural machinery to the local context.

       
CSAM’s regional initiative on integrated straw management started in 2018 to address the commonly shared issue of straw burning in the region via mechanization solutions. Phase I of the project on integrated straw management in Cambodia, Indonesia and Nepal was funded by the China-ESCAP Cooperation Programme from 2021 to 2023. The Phase II Pilot Project in Cambodia, Indonesia and Nepal is funded by the 2030 Agenda Sub-Fund of the United Nations Peace and Development Fund under the project titled "Strengthening Mechanization-Based Solutions for Climate-Smart Crop Residue Management in Cambodia, Indonesia, and Nepal" from 2024 to 2028. This regional initiative, which also includes research and pilot projects in China and Viet Nam, was recognized by the United Nations South-South Cooperation Office as one of the best practices in South-South and triangular cooperation in 2022. Building on the positive outcomes of this regional initiative, discussions have begun to launch new pilot projects in Thailand and Lao PDR in 2025.