TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian President Joko Widodo, or Jokowi, in a press conference on Thursday, announced that he will officially lift the ban on cooking oil exports which will be effective on Monday, May 23.

“I have decided to reopen cooking oil export,” said the President today.

Jokowi first suspended exports of the commodity and its raw materials on April 28 this year following a meeting on the fulfillment of people's needs, especially domestic demands for cooking oil.

On April 27, the president held a press conference stating that the temporary ban on cooking oil exports would be lifted once supplies in the market returns to normal and prices become affordable again.

“Once the domestic demand is fulfilled, I will surely lift the export ban,” he said at the time.

However, exports have been permitted again as it is believed that the national cooking oil supply has grown since the temporary export ban was set in motion. National supplies prior to the export ban amounted to 64,500 tons and had grown to 211,000 tons per month after the ban was imposed. This exceeded the average national need for cooking oil of 194,000 tons per month.

Jokowi said that bulk cooking oil prices in a number of regions currently remain high but believes that they will drop in a couple of weeks ahead. Another reason the export ban was lifted is that the palm oil industry employs 17 million people and that the ban had also affected them.

But he did not elaborate on whether the lifting of the export ban only affects cooking oil or its derivative products.

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FAJAR PEBRIANTO