President Prabowo, Forestry Minister Discuss Balancing Development and Forest Conservation

Minister of Forestry Raja Juli Antoni delivers a press statement following a meeting with President Prabowo Subianto at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta, Monday (02/03). (Photo by: BPMI of Presidential Secretariat)

President Prabowo Subianto met with Minister of Forestry Raja Juli Antoni on Monday (02/03) at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta to discuss measures to achieve a balance between forest conservation, sustainable development, and public well-being.

“We must manage the three components properly so that we can maintain our forests as the lungs of the planet. Development must carry on; it must not stop. The ultimate goal of the ownership and the tenure of our forests is public well-being,” Raja Juli said in a press statement following the meeting.

To maximize the measure implementation, Raja Juli announced the issuance of a Ministerial Decree, which revokes the Forest Utilization Business Permit (PBPH) of 18 companies that had been granted permits yet did not optimize forest utilization.

“The Forest Utilization Business Permit (PBPH) of 18 companies from the islands of Aceh to Papua for a total of 526,144 hectares, half a million hectares. Several private companies were permitted to utilize the forests, but they did not make the most of it. And the President ordered that forest functions are optimized for public well-being,” he said.

Raja Juli also underscored the importance of agroforestry programs to overcome degraded forest issues and to support national food security, adding that the Government would continue to preserve forests and promote development that benefits the people.

“I am saying that we have potential. There are 26.7 million hectares of forest that have been degraded, barren, and burnt. We can optimize its functions with agroforestry and multiple cropping for food self-sufficiency. This is called reserved forests for food, energy, and water,” he said.

“We will preserve our forests through replanting, reforestation, but at the same time, we will plant productive crops that will help us realize food self-sufficiency, which is an order of President Prabowo Subianto,” Raja Juli remarked. (BPMI of Presidential Secretariat/DNS) (DH/LW)