Enviro News Asia, Bogor — Indonesia’s Ministry of Forestry has reaffirmed the importance of cross-sector collaboration in advancing sustainable forest management and achieving the country’s Forestry and Other Land Use (FOLU) Net Sink 2030 target. The commitment was highlighted during the Forester, Academic, and Corporate Talk (FACT) 2026 forum organized by the Student Executive Board of the Faculty of Forestry and Environment at IPB University in Bogor on Friday.
Held under the theme “Tracing Forest Management from Upstream to Downstream in the PBPH Era: Between Investment, Ecology, and Social Justice,” the forum brought together academics, government officials, and private sector representatives to discuss the future of Indonesia’s forestry sector.
Representing Forestry Ministry Secretary-General Mahfudz M.P., Head of the Center for Sustainable Forest Development Gun Gun Hidayat praised the initiative, describing the synergy among academia, policymakers, and businesses as essential to guiding the transition of Indonesia’s forest governance.
“Under the Forest Utilization Business Licensing (PBPH) framework, we are required to harmonize three major dimensions from upstream to downstream—investment, ecology, and social justice,” Gun Gun said in his remarks.
He explained that Indonesia has shifted its forestry paradigm from traditional timber management to landscape management based on multiple forest enterprises and environmental service valuation. The approach is also aligned with President Prabowo Subianto’s Asta Cita development agenda.
From an ecological perspective, the forestry sector is expected to contribute around 60 percent of Indonesia’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction target under the FOLU Net Sink 2030 roadmap, making it a cornerstone of the country’s climate strategy.
In terms of investment, the ministry has adopted a land-use approach combining land sparing and land sharing principles to encourage green investment while promoting downstream processing and a circular bioeconomy. The sector is expected to move beyond raw material exports toward higher-value products.
Gun Gun emphasized that ecological sustainability and economic investment would be meaningless without social justice. Referring to Presidential Instruction No. 8 of 2025 on extreme poverty eradication, he noted that the government has expanded social forestry access to 8.33 million hectares, benefiting 1.42 million households and supporting 16,553 Social Forestry Business Groups (KUPS).
Based on the National Socioeconomic Single Data (DTSEN), about 64.23 percent of beneficiaries belong to vulnerable economic groups.
FACT 2026 featured discussions involving stakeholders from various sectors, including Director of Forest Products Processing and Marketing Development Ade Mukadi, APHI Asset, Finance and Business Committee Chairman Endro Siswoko, and PT Mohairson Pawan Khatulistiwa President Director Syamsul Budiman.
Addressing approximately 500 students attending the forum, speakers stressed that future forestry professionals must become multidisciplinary experts capable of understanding artificial intelligence, digital governance, carbon markets, and green entrepreneurship alongside conventional forestry science.
In addition to seminars and interactive discussions, the event included corporate exhibitions and environmental photography displays, showcasing cross-generational commitments to sustainable forest management. (*)
