Jakarta (ANTARA) – Regional heads have been asked to map drought prone agricultural areas ahead of the dry season caused by the El Niño phenomenon to maintain food security.Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman issued the instruction directing all governors and district heads in Indonesia to prepare an integrated early warning system.”In anticipation of this year's dry season, we have instructed all regional leaders to map drought-prone areas and establish an early warning system,” Sulaiman said during a working meeting with Commission IV of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR) in Jakarta on Tuesday.The minister noted that this step is crucial to ensure rapid responses to potential drought while reducing the impact on agricultural output through strategic planning.Furthermore, the Agriculture Ministry is optimizing irrigation water management through network rehabilitation and the construction of reservoirs and shallow wells, deep wells, and the use of piped pumping and pumped irrigation.These efforts are reinforced by a strategy of accelerating planting using drought-resistant varieties and establishing adaptive cropping patterns, and improving coordination between local governments and all agricultural stakeholders.To support the implementation of this policy, Sulaiman said his office has gradually prepared large quantities of agricultural machinery including water pumps, tractors, hand sprayers, and transplanters.Between 2024 and 2025, the government provided 171,000 units of agricultural equipment to strengthen farmers' preparedness in facing climate change and the dry season.By 2026, the target is to distribute 37,000 units of water infrastructure, such as pumped irrigation, piping, conservation, tertiary network rehabilitation, and an additional 94,000 water pumps to support production, he continued.Earlier, Sulaiman pointed out that Indonesia has extensive experience in handling El Niño allowing it to maintain stable production through well-calibrated adaptation and mitigation strategies. “El Niño may cause dry conditions for up to six months, but the 2015 episode was likely stronger,” Sulaiman said in Makassar on April 5.He noted that the government has successfully managed El Niño together with partners in 2015, 2023, and 2024 and has also dealt with La Niña.