Jokowi Hopes Social Forestry Can Encourage Productive Community

Probolinggo, E Java, (Antra) -  President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has expressed his hope that the social forestry program he launched in September 2016 to boost economic equity can encourage the community to be more productive.

"Indonesia is a large country with a population of 250 million people, and if the people are all productive and willing to produce anything, then the country will no longer need to import but instead export the products developed by the people," Jokowi remarked while reviewing the social forestry program for economic equity in Probolinggo District, East Java, on Thursday.

Hence, the head of state expressed hope that the forest of Perum Perhutani, Indonesian state-owned forest enterprise responsible for the management of state forests, which can be given to the community in the form of Forest Utilization Permit (IPH) letter, should be utilized optimally.

"If the permit that has been given is not used productively, or neglected, we will withdraw it again," the president told the IPH recipients from Probolinggo, Lumajang, and Jember districts.

The president stated that a similar business model, which utilizes the social forestry for small and medium enterprises, will be implemented in other regions of Indonesia.

According to the president, the utilization of community forest will be aided by financial assistance from the bank.

The community forest provides land for the farmers for a term of 35 years.

"We will extend the term if the program is productive and supports the prosperity of the farmers. The land status also has legal power," Jokowi remarked.

Jokowi has also mandated that the access to the market for outcomes of social forestry projects should increase, and the public should be given the knowledge and technical ability to strengthen their business and livelihood.

The head of state also said that farmers who use this social forest will be accompanied by Perhutani and banks, namely Bank BNI.

Environment and Forestry Ministry has set a target of 12.7 million hectares of forest areas to be managed by the local people through many programs, such as Social Forestry Scheme, Forest Village, Peoples Forest Plant, Customary Forest, and Forest Partnership.

The 12.7-million-hectare target is a manifestation of Jokowi's Nawacita program, an agenda to achieve greater economic self-reliance by focusing on strategic sectors.

The program, as conceived by the ministry, is meant to support the Nawacita program of Jokowi and Vice President M. Jusuf Kalla.(*)