Deputy Minister of Forestry Rohmat Marzuki said at the 2025 National Forestry Extension Conference in Jakarta on Tuesday that the groups would supply their key commodities to the cooperative for distribution.
“Forest farmer groups will manage leading commodities such as honey and coffee. In Maluku, for instance, they produce spices like nutmeg and pepper. These groups will work with the Red and White Village Cooperative, which already operates a basic goods outlet,” Marzuki explained.
He noted that collaboration among forest farmer groups, forestry extension workers, and the Red and White Village Cooperative aligns with Presidential Instruction No. 9 of 2025 on the acceleration of establishing Red and White Village Cooperatives.
“The cooperative will serve as a collective platform for forestry extension workers, forest farmer groups, and forest village communities to strengthen access to financing, boost product competitiveness, and foster local economic self-reliance,” he said.
According to the Ministry of Forestry, a total of 10,050 forestry extension workers assisting 27,136 forest farmer groups across 38 provinces have generated an Economic Transaction Value of Forest Farmer Groups (NTE KTH) amounting to Rp2.9 trillion (approx. US$174.7 million).
This achievement stems from the economic activities of 10,094 forest farmer groups supported by 3,138 civil servant extension workers, 6,029 community volunteers, and 883 private sector facilitators.
Meanwhile, under the Social Forestry Program, the ministry recorded a National Economic Value (NEKON) of Rp1 trillion (US$60 million) from 3,146 Social Forestry Business Groups.
These figures reflect the success story of forestry extension programs in supporting communities and contributing to national GDP from the non-private sector.
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Translator: Anita Permata, Kuntum Khaira
Editor: M Razi Rahman
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