Enviro News Asia, Jakarta — Indonesia has begun channeling performance-based REDD+ climate finance to 10 provinces as the government seeks to strengthen forest protection, carbon governance and wildfire preparedness amid growing concerns over a strong El Niño.
The funding is being distributed through the Green Climate Fund Output 2 (GCF-2) Result-Based Payment (RBP) scheme, with the agreement signed in Jakarta on August 12, 2026. The initiative is being managed through the Environmental Fund Management Agency (BPDLH) and is intended to support provinces that have contributed to emissions-reduction efforts through forest and land management.
The 10 recipient provinces are Papua, North Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, Bangka Belitung Islands, West Nusa Tenggara, Aceh, Highland Papua, Maluku, South Sulawesi and South Papua.
Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said the RBP mechanism is an important component of Indonesia’s broader carbon-market architecture and supports the country’s target of achieving FOLU Net Sink 2030.
He emphasized that performance-based financing complements other carbon-market mechanisms, including the voluntary carbon market and the development of a nested carbon accounting system across provinces.
“The funding is based on performance,” Raja Juli said, stressing that financial support should be linked to measurable environmental outcomes and contribute to strengthening Indonesia’s carbon-trading ecosystem.
The minister also highlighted BPDLH’s role in managing climate and environmental finance. He called for the agency’s institutional integrity, transparency and professional standards to be maintained as Indonesia seeks to attract international climate investment.
Beyond carbon finance, the government used the occasion to raise concerns over the growing risk of forest and land fires. Raja Juli cited the latest weather projections indicating the potential for a strong El Niño, which could increase dry conditions and raise the risk of fires across parts of Indonesia.
The government has prepared firefighting and weather-modification measures, including water-bombing helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft for weather modification operations. However, the Forestry Ministry stressed that preventive action at the community level remains critical, particularly when rainfall and atmospheric moisture are limited.
Local governments and communities have therefore been urged to strengthen vigilance and avoid land-clearing practices involving fire. The ministry also called for greater coordination between central and regional authorities to prevent fires before they develop into larger forest and land-fire events.
The RBP REDD+ GCF-2 funding is expected to support activities that strengthen forest protection, local capacity and community welfare while improving environmental governance. The government also expects the financing to encourage provinces to maintain and improve their forest-related emissions-reduction performance.
The initiative illustrates how Indonesia is increasingly linking climate finance with measurable forest-management outcomes. At the same time, the government’s warning over El Niño underscores the need to connect carbon-finance programs with practical measures to protect forests and communities from climate-related risks. (*)
