Forestry Minister Deemed to Strengthen Indonesia's Commitment to Global Elephant Conservation

The Indonesian Government’s policy to strengthen the protection of Sumatran and Kalimantan elephants has received appreciation from the international conservation community. The government’s move through Presidential Instruction (Inpres) Number 8 of 2026 is considered to further strengthen Indonesia’s position as a country that plays an important role in elephant conservation in the Asian region. Chair of the IUCN SSC Asian Elephant Specialist Group, Heidi Riddle, said Indonesia has shown a continuously growing commitment to elephant protection efforts over the years. According to her, one important milestone was the holding of the Asian Elephant Range States Meeting in Jakarta in 2017, which gave birth to the Jakarta Declaration for Asian Elephant Conservation 2017. “From a global perspective, Indonesia has over the years shown an increasingly strong commitment to elephant conservation. One important milestone was when Indonesia hosted the Asian Elephant Range States Meeting in Jakarta in 2017, which resulted in the Jakarta Declaration for Asian Elephant Conservation 2017, the first formal declaration agreed upon by all Asian elephant range countries as a regional commitment to strengthen elephant conservation,” she told reporters on Saturday, 18 July 2026. According to Heidi, after the declaration, Indonesia continued to strengthen various conservation policies, including through a landscape-based conservation approach and cross-sector collaboration. “Since then, Indonesia has continued to strengthen various policies, develop a landscape-based conservation approach, and encourage cross-sector collaboration as part of its elephant conservation strategy,” she said. She assessed that the issuance of Presidential Instruction Number 8 of 2026 is a continuation of that commitment because it strengthens coordination between ministries and institutions in maintaining elephant populations and habitats. “On behalf of the IUCN SSC Asian Elephant Specialist Group, we reaffirm our commitment to continue supporting the Government of Indonesia through sharing experiences, scientific knowledge, and the expertise of our members from various Asian elephant range countries. We believe Indonesia will continue to play an important role as one of the leaders in elephant conservation in the region, while providing inspiration for other countries in building a better future for Asian elephants,” she said.