Indonesia tries to get 235 million people to change they way they cook

9/9/2007

JAKARTA : Een Toni lines up alongside hundreds of other housewives every day to buy kerosene to fuel her stove, only to return home with an empty container. Supplies to the capital have been largely cut as Indonesia tries to get people to use natural gas instead.

The government for decades subsidized kerosene, which remains the cooking fuel of choice across much of the developing world, to make it affordable for the poor.

It says it will save US$3.7 billion a year if it can get the nation of 235 million people to make the switch. And if Indonesia eventually exports kerosene, which is commonly upgraded into jetliner fuel, it would even be in the position to earn money.

In theory, it should be an easy sell. Gas is cheaper and easier to use. It is also better for the environment, emitting no fumes or smoke and less carbon dioxide. But not everyone is convinced, in part because little has been done to raise public awareness.

Though each poor household has been promised a free stove and a small ration of gas to get them started, it was a slum fire sparked by one of the tanks in east Jakarta that grabbed the most headlines.

"I'm not going to use gas," insisted Toni, after waiting hours under the blaring sun for kerosene in the neighborhood of Pasar Manggis. "It's expensive and I am afraid if there's a leak, I'll be blown up."

Indonesia, the world's fourth most populous country, has been struggling economically since the 1997 financial crisis that helped bring about the downfall of former dictator Suharto and greater political freedom.

Though it is Southeast Asia's only member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and one of the world's largest natural gas suppliers, it has imported oil since 2004 because of aging fields and declining investment in exploration.

When international oil prices started spiraling in 2005, the government was forced to slash fuel subsidies that were costing the government billions of dollars, or roughly a quarter of the budget.

The price of oil and gas nearly doubled overnight, but most people understood at the time the move was necessary to avert another crisis. A tripling in the cost of kerosene to 23 U.S. cents per liter, however, was harder to take partly because it hit the least educated.

The price has shot up to 50 U.S. cents in the capital in recent weeks as the government cut supplies to try to force people to convert to gas.

Lacking funds for education, health and infrastructure, the government is willing to put up with a little resistance.

"It is a total waste to cook with jet engine fuel," Vice President Jusuf Kalla said.

The distribution of free stove and gas rations started in greater Jakarta in May and will extend to other parts of the country later this year.

Not everyone is complaining. Rohana, 48, admits she was skeptical at first. But a week after receiving her free stove and gas, she's starting to see the point.

"It turns out to be far more economical," said the mother of four, who used to spend US$24 a month to buy kerosene but estimates it will cost her less than US$6 to use gas.

"I'm still afraid to turn on the gas stove, though," she added. "I'm letting my daughters do the cooking for now."