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☆ Factbox-Policy Pledges of Indonesia's Presidential Candidates
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

(Reuters) - Three candidates are running in Indonesia's presidential election on Feb. 14. The following is a summary of policy objectives they have pledged while campaigning. ANIES BASWEDAN- Target 5.5%-6.5% average annual economic growth from 2025-2029- Create 15 million jobs, including 'green' jobs- Raise the tax-to-GDP ratio from 10.4% in 2022 to 13%-16% by 2029- Target annual inflation of 2%-3% from 2025-2029- Offer incentives for renewable energy projects- Impose a carbon tax with proceeds to be used as an endowment fund to finance development of renewable energy- Increase the 'village fund' to 5 billion rupiah ($317,965) for each village, from the current 1 billion rupiah. - Widen access to global markets for palm oil farmers- Strengthen free trade agreements and Indonesia's role in international financial institutions- Minimise imports of staple foods- Create 2 million new affordable housing units, including for informal workers, youth- Expedite forest conservation and rehabilitation projects- Limit new construction of, and retire existing coal-fired power plants, especially in Java, Bali islands- Review debt of state-owned enterprises, continue debt restructuring programme- Revise Jobs Creation Law with goal to ensure fair wages for workers- Evaluate the $32 billion new capital city project- Evaluate food estate programme, replacing it with contract farming, a scheme to ensure farm products will be sold- Impose a wealth tax on Indonesia's 100 richest people- Audit the nickel industry with focus on its impact on the environment and ensuring welfare of domestic workers- Strengthen the anti-corruption agency by revising the law that regulates it- Ease permitting requirements for building places of worshipGANJAR PRANOWO- Continue programmes of outgoing President Joko Widodo's administration- Target average annual economic growth of 7%- Create 17 million new jobs- Expedite construction of new capital city- Increase the defence budget as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) to between 1%-2%, from about 0.8% presently. Modernise military hardware- Target 30% share for renewable sources in energy mix by 2029- Allow more renewable energy producers to use electricity grids of state utility firms to boost green energy adoption- Set up a dedicated ministry for the palm oil sector- Maintain moratorium on deforestation, accelerate reforestation programmes- Create digital tax collection system under the new tax agency separated from finance ministry- Limit permit issuance of new nickel smelter to avoid a further oversupply- Expand social welfare to cover 15 million families, up from 10 million currently- Provide funding to ensure at least one member of a poor family receives education until college- Strengthen national anti-corruption agency- Maintain foreign policy of non-alignment- Strengthen Indonesia's commitment to support fight of Palestinian people- Revitalise the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and its decision-making process, especially regarding South China Sea disputes.

Persons: ANIES, GANJAR, Joko Widodo's, PRABOWO, Joko, Stanley Widianto, Ananda Teresia, Stefanno Sulaiman, Bernadette Christina Munthe, Martin Petty Organizations: Reuters, Association of Southeast Asian Nations Locations: Java, Bali, South

☆ French farmers block roads, dump produce as protest edges closer to Paris
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A farmer pulls waste to block the RN 19 near in Vesoul, eastern France, on January 25, 2024. French farmers blocked highways and dumped crates of imported produce on Thursday, demanding urgent action on low farmgate prices, green regulation and free-trade policies as swelling protests moved closer to Paris. "We always have more rules to follow, we are always asked for more and we earn less and less. On the southwestern edge of Paris, dozens of tractors led a go-slow during the morning rush-hour. Asked when the protesters would lift roadblocks, Gaillot said to ask Attal: "It is he who holds the key."

Persons: Gabriel Attal, Arnaud Gaillot, Attal, Jean, Jacques Pesquerel, France's, Gaillot Organizations: Farmers, Young Farmers, Le Parisien, Calvados Coordination Rurale Locations: Vesoul, France, Paris, Le, Calvados, Marseille, Lyon

☆ France's Farmer Lobby Turns up Heat on Government Before Talks
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

Farmers cite a government tax on tractor fuel, cheap imports, water storage issues, price pressures from retailers and red tape among their grievances. France's largest farm union FNSEA has said it is considering nationwide protests in the coming weeks. Farming policy has always been a sensitive issue in France, the European Union's biggest agricultural producer, with thousands of independent producers of wine, meat and dairy. President Emmanuel Macron is wary of farmers' growing support for the far-right ahead of the European Parliament elections in June. Fearing a spillover from farmer protests in Germany, Poland and Romania, the government has withdrawn a draft farming law planned for debate this week and invited farming representatives for talks, starting on Monday afternoon.

Persons: Nicolas Delame PARIS, Arnaud Gaillot, I'd, FNSEA, Arnaud Rousseau, Emmanuel Macron, Gaillot, Rousseau, Gabriel Attal, Marc Fesneau, Fesneau, Nicolas Delam, Diana Mandia, Tassilo Hummel, Ros Russell Organizations: Young Farmers, France, Farmers, France Inter, Farming, Midi Libre Locations: Europe, France, Germany, Poland, Romania

☆ The farming industry is struggling with labor shortages and the climate crisis. But agtech like digital cow collars and AI-quality-control tools are solving problems in unexpected ways.
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Sabina Wex | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Still, there are concerns about who owns the farm data and how it's being used. Chemeres said that he saw agriculture tech companies bombard farmers with innovations to mitigate this labor shortage. He believes the future of agriculture tech will be "almost surgical," he said, especially as AI comes into the field and becomes more sophisticated. These concerns came to a head in 2020, when Climate FieldView was accused of sharing farmers' data with Tillable, a platform that connects landowners with farmers. Not all tech companies do this.

Persons: Andy Lenkaitis, Lenkaitis Holsteins, Sarah Lenkaitis, Sarah, Lenkaitis, Bill Oemichen, Jeff Chemeres, Chemeres, Croptracker, Oemichen, that's, Bayer, FieldView, it's Organizations: Service, McKinsey, Credit Services, Data, Services, US Department of, The National Young Farmers Coalition, University of Wisconsin Survey Center, University of Saskatchewan, Bayer, US Locations: Wall, Silicon, Charles , Illinois, Minnesota, California, Washington, German

Catalonia, Spain CNN —Standing in his field of stunted, withered maize, Santi Caudevilla is very worried. It’s becoming increasingly hard to make ends meet as crops shrivel through lack of water – or cannot be planted at all. “This is the worst period that we have had for the last 100 years,” Samuel Reyes, director of the Catalan Water Agency, told CNN. Allison Nussbaum/NASA Allison Nussbaum/NASA These two images show shrinking water reservoirs in the Catalonia region of Spain. In April, Spain requested emergency funding from the European Union to help farmers cope with the impacts of the drought.

☆ Hundreds of tractors enter Paris in protest against pesticide bans
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] French farmers drive their tractors near the Invalides during a protest over pesticide restrictions and other environmental regulations they say are threatening agricultural production, in Paris, France, February 8, 2023. REUTERS/Sarah MeyssonnierPARIS, Feb 8 (Reuters) - French farmers drove hundreds of tractors into Paris early on Wednesday to protest against pesticide restrictions and other environmental regulations they say are threatening farm production in the European Union's largest agricultural power. They warned imports of crops not subject to similar pesticide restrictions would threaten French jobs. Environmental activists say pesticide residues cause damage to the soil and wildlife. Unions were expecting 500 tractors and 2,000 farmers from around Paris to join the protest.

The House agriculture committee will likely be led starting in January by Glenn "GT" Thompson of Pennsylvania. The farm bill has a historical reputation of bipartisanship, so some advocates told Reuters they are warily optimistic. Passage of the 2014 farm bill was held up more than a year as conservative House Republicans tried unsuccessfully to strip the bill of nutrition programs. Every Republican member of the House agriculture committee signed a letter calling the funding “abusive and troublesome." At an August farm conference in Iowa, Thompson said if he led the agriculture committee, he would "ensure that the farm bill doesn't become a climate bill."

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