Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is targeting to distribute 3 million hectares of land to the community through this year`s social forestry activities.

"Last year, 1.9 million hectares of land were distributed to the community. This year, the target is 3 million hectares," the president said in Jakarta on Thursday.

Jokowi stated that he had asked the Minister of Environment and Forestry for 4.3 million hectares, but was offered only 3 million.

"Yes, that is Okay. There is no problem with 3 million, but it should be real, or it should even exceed," the president noted in his official address at the opening of the National Consultation on Agrarian Reform and the 2018 Global Land Forum at the State Palace.

The Head of State stressed that national forestry was part of the agrarian reform that has become the government`s concern to be resolved.

Jokowi also remarked that the certificate-giving program was also an agrarian reform that was still being carried out.

Jokowi said, of the 126 million hectares of land in Indonesia, only 43.5 million were certified, so there were still 82.5 million lands that had not been certified.

The government targets to complete 7 million land certificates this year, and by 2019, it can reach 9 million land certificates.

"I do not know how the Minister of National Land Affairs (BPN) works. That is not my business, but that of the minister. How the BPN woks is the affairs of the BPN office. But what is clear is that we have to work with existing targets. A target of 5 million hectares has been achieved. "This year, the target is to reach 7 million hectares, God willing," he asserted.

Jokowi requested that certificates and concessions to the community, including indigenous people and individuals, be productive.

"Do not let anyone not be productive," the president stated at the end of his speech.

On the occasion, he revealed that the Presidential Regulation (Perpres) on Agrarian Reform would be completed by next week.

He admitted that the draft of the Perpres had not yet reached his desk, but it is targeted to be accomplished next week.

"Pak Kyai (Mr Said Aqil Siradj) asked the Perpres this morning. I checked (the draft) and found that it had been circulated (to the relevant sections) but had not yet arrived at my desk. I gave Pak Menko (Coordinating Minister for economic affairs) one week to complete finish the Perpres," Jokowi explained in Jakarta Thursday.

The Head of State claimed that the process of issuing the Perpres had to be circulated to the relevant sections first before going to his desk to be signed.

Jokowi stressed that Indonesia was a great nation because it had 17 thousand islands, but the distribution of its land was still considered unfair.

"Many have protested against the unfair distribution of land. I answered that it was not me who divided it," he pointed out.

Reporting by Joko Susilo
Editing by Andi Abdussalam

Reporter: antara
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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