Enviro News Asia, Labuan Bajo – Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni conducted a visit to the permanent nursery in Labuan Bajo.
The nursery is expected to support forest conservation efforts while enhancing the welfare of local communities.
During the visit, Minister Antoni was accompanied by the Director General of Watershed Management and Forest Rehabilitation (PDASRH), Dyah Murtiningsih, and the Inspector General, Djoko Poerwanto.
The Minister engaged in discussions with seven Forest Farmer Groups (KTH) and representatives of indigenous communities.
“It was truly a pleasure and a joy to return to Labuan Bajo, especially to meet the seven community groups who have long been actively involved in greening the forest areas here,” said Minister Raja Antoni at the Labuan Bajo Permanent Nursery, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Monday (7/7/2025).
Minister Antoni emphasized that the involvement of forest farmers and indigenous communities highlights the importance of public participation and collaboration in forest conservation.
He noted that such active community engagement strengthens his commitment to continuing forest preservation while also enhancing the productivity and welfare of forest farmers.
“This again shows how critical community participation is in collaborating with us to ensure forest sustainability, while at the same time improving the welfare of local people through what they cultivate,” he stated.
“This reinforces my intention and determination to work as hard as possible to ensure that our limited budget is allocated to those groups that have consistently made tangible contributions to reforestation and efforts to enhance agricultural productivity and community well-being,” he added.
It is noteworthy that the Labuan Bajo permanent nursery has a target production of 150,000 seedlings, with 137,879 already produced, consisting of timber species and non-timber forest products.
Minister Raja Antoni stated that the nursery is expected to become a hub for reforestation and a driver of local economic development.
“We also hope to introduce fruit crops to support the tourism industry in Labuan Bajo. So once again, the forests are sustained, and the communities thrive,” he concluded.(*)
