Enviro News Asia, Nairobi — Indonesia’s Vice Minister of Environment and Environmental Control Agency (KLH/BPLH), Diaz Hendropriyono, called for stronger international collaboration on freshwater and peatland conservation during a side event of the Seventh Session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-7) in Nairobi, Kenya, on 9 December 2025. The appeal highlighted Indonesia’s leadership in community-based ecosystem protection and its commitment to global environmental resilience.
Speaking at the session titled “Community-Based Freshwater and Peatland Conservation for a Resilient Planet,” Vice Minister Diaz emphasized the critical role of freshwater ecosystems and peatlands in climate regulation and disaster resilience. Indonesia—home to the world’s largest tropical peatlands and holding an estimated 500 cubic kilometers of water stored across 840 large lakes and 735 smaller lakes—has positioned community-led conservation as the foundation of national environmental programs.
He reported that Indonesia successfully restored approximately 4.5 million hectares of peatlands and strengthened KLH/BPLH’s flagship initiative, the Community-Based Peat Care Village Program (DMPG). The program has simultaneously improved rural incomes through independent commodity cultivation and significantly reduced fire incidents. Since its launch in 2017, only three of the 323 participating villages experienced land fires, and the program is set to expand to 800 villages this year.
Vice Minister Diaz also reaffirmed Indonesia’s global leadership in sustainable lake management. He outlined key national regulations, including Law No. 32 of 2024 on Water Resources and Presidential Regulation No. 60 of 2021 on National Priority Lakes, which designates 15 priority lakes. This commitment extends globally through Indonesia’s initiation of UNEA Resolution 5/4 on sustainable lake management, adopted by UNEP in 2022.
Indonesia is currently preparing to establish the Regional Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Lake Management in Asia-Pacific and has expressed readiness to host and facilitate broader regional cooperation. Vice Minister Diaz encouraged countries worldwide to form a global alliance of sustainable lake management centers.
The initiative earned support from UNEP Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, Dechen Tsering, who commended Indonesia’s leadership in community-based lake and peatland conservation. Indonesia’s Ambassador to Kenya, Witjaksono Adji, underscored the vital role of local and Indigenous communities in protecting ecosystems through traditional sustainability practices.
Vice Minister Diaz opened his statement by expressing condolences for the severe floods in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra, which claimed more than 900 lives, reinforcing the urgency of disaster resilience through environmental conservation.
He reiterated that empowering communities and advancing nature-based solutions remain essential for ecosystem restoration, biodiversity protection, food and water security, energy resilience, and global carbon sequestration. He called for unified global action to confront climate challenges and strengthen KLH/BPLH’s presence on the international stage. (*)
