Forestry Minister Deemed Capable of Building New Foundation for Elephant Conservation

Jakarta - Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni is considered capable of building a new foundation for elephant conservation based on national collaboration with the issuance of Presidential Instruction (Inpres) Number 8 of 2026 concerning the Acceleration of Elephant Protection. Wahdi Azmi, a member of the IUCN SSC Asian Elephant Specialist Group (AsESG), stated that through this Inpres, Minister Raja Juli has established an important milestone in strengthening wildlife conservation in Indonesia by bringing about a fundamental change in the approach to elephant conservation. “Through this Inpres, President Prabowo Subianto has provided a very clear direction that the protection of elephant populations and habitats is a national development agenda requiring the involvement of all ministries, agencies, local governments, businesses, academics, and the community. This is a very fundamental paradigm shift for the future of elephant conservation in Indonesia,” Wahdi said in a statement in Jakarta on Friday. According to Wahdi, this paradigm shift aligns with the vision that Minister Raja Juli has been building in wildlife conservation management, particularly for elephants. He highlighted Raja Juli’s consistency in promoting a conservation approach that is no longer carried out partially but is based on landscapes and involves various parties. “From the beginning, he has pushed for the protection of elephant population pockets comprehensively, systemically, and based on landscapes. The issuance of this Inpres is a tangible reflection of that policy direction, namely ensuring that all elephant population pockets receive integrated protection through cross-sector cooperation,” he said. Indonesia has Presidential Instruction Number 1 of 2023 on Mainstreaming Biodiversity in Sustainable Development, Law Number 32 of 2024 which introduces the Preservation Area instrument, as well as the President’s policy regarding innovative financing for national park management. “These instruments collectively form an increasingly strong policy foundation to protect elephant habitats, strengthen landscape connectivity, support forest area management, optimise the restoration of areas from enforcement operations, encourage wildlife-friendly infrastructure development, and develop sustainable conservation financing,” he stated. On the implementation side, Wahdi continued, the Ministry of Forestry together with the Indonesian Elephant Conservation Forum and various stakeholders are finalising the preparation of the Strategy and Action Plan for Conservation (SRAK) for Sumatran and Kalimantan Elephants as a guideline for implementing the Inpres. “At the same time, we also have a major task in managing ex-situ elephants. Going forward, the ex-situ conservation strategy must be designed as an inseparable part of the in-situ strategy (ex-situ linked to in-situ), so that all conservation components work in one complete system with the ultimate goal of ensuring elephant populations remain sustainable in their natural habitats,” he said.