Indonesia’s Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said on Thursday that the Task Force for the Acceleration of Customary Forest Designation will speed up the legal recognition of customary forests, with at least 70,000 hectares expected to be formalised by the end of 2025.
The task force is mandated to cut through bureaucratic hurdles that have long delayed recognition of indigenous land rights.
“By the end of this year, hopefully we will see an additional 70,000 hectares,” Antoni told reporters in Jakarta.
Since 2016, the government has recognised 332,000 hectares of customary forests, but at least 1.4 million hectares remain eligible, he said.
“With the task force, we hope to identify and overcome the bottlenecks. In one year we will establish new patterns, so that in the following year the process will be even faster,” he said.
“What took eight years, we may surpass in a shorter time," he added.
Antoni said that the task force reflects an inclusive approach, bringing together academics, activists and civil society groups that have long advocated for indigenous land rights.
It includes academics from Gadjah Mada University, Bandung Institute of Technology and Cenderawasih University, along with environmental groups such as the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) and the Indigenous Peoples' Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN).
He added that the initiative aligns with President Prabowo Subianto’s Asta Cita development agenda, particularly its eighth pillar, which seeks to balance economic growth with protection of forests, nature and culture.
Indonesia, home to the world’s third-largest rainforest after Brazil and the Democratic Republic of Congo, has faced pressure to strengthen protections for indigenous communities and curb deforestation, even as it seeks to expand palm oil, mining and infrastructure projects.
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Translator: Martha Herlinawati Simanjuntak
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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