Enviro News Asia, Jakarta — Minister of Forestry (Menhut) Raja Juli Antoni conducted a visit to Sebangau National Park in Central Kalimantan. The Minister stated that the peatlands found in Sebangau are vital to the global climate.
During his visit, Minister Raja Antoni was accompanied by the Inspector General of the Ministry of Forestry, Djoko Poerwanto; Head of the Central Kalimantan Provincial Forestry Office, Agustan Saining; and Deputy Mayor of Palangkaraya, Achmad Zaini. Minister Raja Antoni began his journey from Kereng Bengkirai Port by speedboat on Wednesday (April 16, 2025).
Raja Antoni reviewed the rewetting program for peatlands and ecosystem restoration efforts. He expressed satisfaction with the work being done by his team at Sebangau National Park, along with partners and the surrounding community.
“Having the opportunity to directly observe Sebangau National Park, I must say I am very proud and delighted to see the results of the hard work carried out by our forestry colleagues—of course, together with our partners. Earlier, three partners were mentioned by our WWF colleagues: BOSF and BNF, and naturally, the local communities as well,” said Minister Raja Antoni in an official statement from the Ministry of Forestry.
“We looked at a series of photos from back in 1994, showing the severe damage. But through hard work and collaboration, we now see a forest whose ecosystem has been well restored,” he added.
He urged all parties to continue collaborating, especially in areas such as canal improvement and community empowerment across the 40 villages surrounding Sebangau National Park.
“I hope we can involve more partners and stakeholders, including the community. For instance, there used to be 2,000 canal blocks, now there are only about 400 in good condition—so improvements or construction of new canal blocks are needed. Community empowerment has only been implemented in 20 villages so far; we still need to empower the remaining 20 villages around Sebangau National Park,” he explained.
Minister Raja Antoni emphasized that the peat ecosystem in Sebangau is not only significant for Indonesia but also for the world. According to him, peat ecosystems play a crucial role in climate change mitigation.
“I truly hope we can improve all of this, because the peat ecosystem in Sebangau is important not only for Indonesia but also for the region and the globe, significantly influencing climate change,” he said.
“Sebangau National Park holds a very strategic position for climate change mitigation—not only for Indonesia, but globally,” he concluded. (*)
