Manage Forest with Corrective Action, President Jokowi Says

President Jokowi plants Teak (Tectona grandis) to mark the Commemoration of the 2017 National Environment Day, in Manggala Wana Bhakti, Ministry of Environment and Forestry, on Wednesday (2/8)

There has to be a “corrective action” to make breakthroughs and innovations in forest management, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo asserted.“Do not only think about the monotonous routine, so there are no breakthroughs. As a result, for years, Indonesia’s forest management has been a monotonous routine, and brought no breakthroughs,” President Jokowi said in a remarks at the Commemoration of the 2017 National Environment Day, in Manggala Wana Bhakti, Ministry of Environment and Forestry, on Wednesday (2/8).

The President also cited the example of forest management in Sweden and Finland, in which 70 to 80 percent of the economy sourced from good forest management. “I think we only need to copy them. Don’t think too much. Copy and adapt it to the condition of the forests in our country. We should copy the management which have proven to be good for hundreds of years,” the President firmly said.

President Jokowi also instructed the Ministry of Environment and Forestry to seek a way to manage the forestry and environment, at the same time. “(It will bring benefits) for both the economy and environment,” the President said adding that project-oriented programs and plans should be eliminated.

The programs should be focussed on the relocation in certain region. It will become an example that will be adopted by other regions. “We have been doing project-oriented programs for a long time. I’m sorry to say, but if I want to open the cases, it will cause a commotion,” President Jokowi said.

According to the President, it takes noble souls and a good work ethic of the foresters to solve concrete and real problems on the ground.

Thus, there will be a clear line about the forests which get protections, concessions, or those that will be developed into a social forest. “National park should be protected. We cannot let hundreds to thousands of hectares land be destroyed. We finally realized that we let thousands of hectares land destroyed. We must stop this,” the President firmly said.

In order to implement a “corrective action”, the permits should be managed. Do not issue permit to any applicants. “It should be stopped. If it’s not, beware of the consequenses,” the President firmly said.

In that event, President Jokowi signed the First Day Cover Stamp-2017 Environment Series  followed by, planting Teak (Tectona grandis) as the Landmark of Indonesian Forest and signed an inauguration inscription of the Landmark of Indonesian Forest. (DND/OJI/ES) (RA/MMB/YM/Naster)