At least 6 out of 10 dams in South Sulawesi were built during the era of President Joko Widodo.

KABARIKA.ID, MAKASSAR – South Sulawesi province is known as one of Indonesia's food baskets, so it is natural that this region has many dams, large and small.

In the province whose capital is Makassar, at least 10 dams are already in operation and some are still being completed.

In this province, the rice planting and harvesting season lasts all year round.

For this reason, South Sulawesi benefits from nature that supports agriculture, so it supports national food security.

However, under President Joko Widodo's administration, as many as six dams and irrigation systems were constructed, which were included in the Draft National Strategy (PSN).

The dams and spillways in South Sulawesi are Bili-bili and Karalloe Dam in Gowa Regency, Baliase Irrigation in North Luwu, Ponre-ponre Dam in Bone Regency, Paselloreng Dam in Wajo, Pamukkulu Dam in Takalar, Tampangen Dam in Sidenreng Rappang (Sidrap), and Jenelata Dam in Gowa, which is still under construction.

There are also dams and irrigation systems that were built by President Jokowi, namely Baliase Irrigation in East Luwu, Ponre-ponre Dam in Bone, Paselloreng Dam in Wajo, Tampangeng in Sidrap, Pamukkulu in Takalar and Jenelata in Gowa.

Available data shows that in 2015, irrigation in South Sulawesi ranked fourth after East Java, Central Java and West Java with an area of ​​more than 600,000 hectares, out of an area of ​​approximately 656,610 hectares of raw rice fields.

Thus, rice production in South Sulawesi averages more than five million tonnes of dry milled grain (GKG), the equivalent of more than 2.8 million tonnes of rice per year.

Finally, on July 5, 2024, President Jokowi inaugurated the Pamukkulu Dam, located in Pamakkulu Village, North Polongbangkeng District, Takalar Regency.

The same dam is linked to the Pamukkulu Dam in Jeneponto Regency, which was built in 2017.

The dam is 65.5 meters high, built to develop water resources to support food security programs, and is expected to accommodate a volume of 82.57 million cubic meters of water.

It will also be used for the irrigation of 6,432 hectares, a 2.5 MW hydroelectric plant and 165 liters/second of raw water.

“Water is the source of life. Not just for daily activities, but very important, because in all countries agricultural activity is in decline. There is a risk that 500 million people will go hungry worldwide. Water is therefore very important. We can use Pamukkulu Dam to increase agricultural productivity. We want to manage our water, not let it enter the river and flow directly into the sea. “But we are preparing for irrigation,” President Jokowi explained during the inauguration of the Pamukkulu Dam.

Deputy Chairman of Commission V DPR RI Andi Irwan Darmawan Aras of South Sulawesi said that in the past five years, three dams in South Sulawesi were inaugurated by President Jokowi, namely the Karelloe Gowa Dam , Passeloreng and Gilireng (network) Wajo Dam and Pamukkulu in Takalar regency.

“There is still one dam that is not yet completed, namely the Jenelata Dam in Gowa, which is expected to be completed in 2028. And what is certain is that the dams built in South Sulawesi will contribute no only irrigation, but also help overcome floods,” Iwan said some time ago.

Meanwhile, Pamukkulu Sejahtera Water User Farmers Association principal secretary Nasir hopes that the existence of the dam can increase the planting intensity within a year.

“I hope that the water from this dam can increase the productivity of agricultural products in Takalar, which is generally between 5 and 8 tons per hectare,” he hoped.

Specifically, the construction of the Jenelata Dam aims to optimize flood control in Makassar City, which until now only relied on the Bili-Bili Dam with a capacity of 375 million cubic meters, with a reservoir of 40,428 hectares. Previously, it was built with foreign loans amounting to IDR 780 billion in collaboration with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The Bilibili Dam is a source of raw water for the Gowa and Makassar Regional Drinking Water Companies (PDAM).

According to Head of Water Resources, Human Settlements and Land Planning Department Andi Darmawan Bintang, Bili-bili is the largest dam in South Sulawesi. But retaining water is no longer enough to control flooding during heavy rains, as happened in 2019, which had a very pronounced impact on Makassar city.

“So, the Jenelata Dam will also be used to hold back the overflowing Jenelata River that flows to the Jeneberang River, so that it can help the Bili-Bili Dam that also holds back the Jeneberang River upstream,” said Darmawan.

It is hoped that the existence of the Jenelata Dam will be more optimal in reducing flooding in Makassar City and helping in times of drought. So with this water tank, it provides a water park when El Nino occurs.

Besides flood control, Jenelata Dam also functions as a source of irrigation water for 26,773 hectares of agricultural land, 2,400 hectares in the Bili-bili Irrigation Zone (DI), 13,916 hectares in the Bissua irrigation zone and 10,457 hectares in Kampili irrigation zone.

The Jenelata Dam also functions as a source of raw water supply with a capacity of 6.05 m3/second for Bili-Bili, Jenelata, the water requirements of the sugar factories and sugarcane fields of Takalar, and the Sungguminasa water intake.

Furthermore, Head of the South Sulawesi Food Crops, Horticulture and Planting Service (PTHBun), Imran Jausi, explained that climate change really has a big impact on the planting season, special monitoring is therefore necessary to accelerate the planting season in all districts/cities in South Sulawesi, especially areas that are rice production centers, to ensure that rice production targets can be achieved.

We need to monitor rice planting in September and October because November and December have started to rain. “And after harvesting, you should not wait too long, a maximum of 2 weeks and 10 days, another 14 days to replant,” Imran explained.

To achieve this goal, the government has made several efforts, of course using the existing irrigation network, now assisted by pumping (pompanization) from the Ministry of Agriculture.

“This water pump is very useful in times of drought,” Imran concluded.

South Sulawesi Dam Data:
– Bili-bili Gowa Dam

This dam with a reservoir of 40,428 hectares was built with foreign loans amounting to IDR 780 billion in collaboration with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The Bilibili Dam is a source of raw water for the Gowa and Makassar Regional Drinking Water Companies (PDAM).
– Kampili Gowa Dam

This dam is located in the Palangga Gowa district. The year of construction of this building was 1930 with an area of ​​10,454 hectares.
– Jeneberang Rubber Dam

This dam is located in Barombong District, Takalar Regency. The area of ​​this dam is 11,301 hectares.
-Ponré-ponré dam

The Concrete Face Rockfill Dam with a height of 55 m, a volume of 480,000 m and a pool area of ​​295 Ha is located in Bone Regency, South Sulawesi.

The Ponre-Ponre Dam functions as a sediment and flood control system for the Tinco River and Wallanae catchment, increasing technical irrigation land covering an area of ​​4,411 ha, and is used for fishing in fresh water and tourism.
– Paselloreng Dam

Paselloreng Dam was built in 2015 and completed in 2020 with a budget of IDR 771.7 billion. And the Gilireng Dam was built in 2018, completed in 2021 with a budget of IDR 200 billion.
The existence of dams, he continued, can maintain, strengthen and increase food security.

The Paselloreng Dam would have a capacity of 138 million cubic meters, with an area of ​​1,258 hectares, and would be capable of irrigating 8,500 hectares of agricultural land, as well as retaining 145 liters of raw water per second. also capable of reducing flooding by 389 meters per second.
– Karelloe Dam

The Karalloe Dam, located in Gowa Regency, will irrigate 7,004 hectares of rice fields in Jeneponto Regency.

Karalloe Dam is a source of raw water for the community of Jeneponto of 440 liters per second, an electrical potential of 4.5 MW, for flood control, water conservation and of course a potential tourist destination and economic growth for the surrounding community.
– Pamukkulu Dam
This dam is located in Pamakkulu Village, North Polongbangkeng District, Takalar Regency.

The 65.5 meter high dam was built to develop water resources to support the food security programme, where it is hoped that it will be able to accommodate a volume of 82.57 million m3 of water, which will be used for the irrigation of 6,432 hectares. Hydroelectric power of 2.5 MW and raw water 165 liters/second.
– Jenelata Dam

Will help the bili-bili dam which is old. The construction of the Jenelata Dam is worth IDR 4.4 trillion and will free up approximately 26 thousand hectares of agricultural land.
– Irrigation of Bali

This irrigation system is a large project intended to irrigate approximately 21,000 hectares of rice fields in northern Luwu. Balase irrigation helps increase agricultural productivity in the region, particularly in the Masamba region.
– Tampangeng Dam