Forestry Minister Launches DSS Jaga Rimba to Simplify Forest Management

Minister of Forestry Raja Juli Antoni launched the Decision Support System (DSS) Jaga Rimba, a data-based application to simplify Indonesia’s forest management. The minister stated that this initiative is an internal digital transformation step to realise a ‘one man policy’ to address the complexity of forestry governance, which requires fast, accurate, transparent, and accountable information. ‘This idea is simple, but it has historical urgency to improve our performance. DSS is not just an application; we are trying to fix our way of thinking. We must no longer have sectoral egos,’ he said during the launch in Jakarta on Wednesday. Previously, the Ministry of Forestry managed around 300 separate applications across various directorates general for forestry administration, including land-use permits. With DSS Jaga Rimba, all information is expected to be integrated into a single application that can be monitored directly by the minister and accessed by all relevant directorate units. He also expressed hope that the platform will enable major improvements to forest management policies and eliminate overlapping, unlicensed land use, thereby preserving Indonesia’s forests as the home of the nation’s life. ‘Our hope is that DSS will make it easier for external parties to do business, making it more convenient, with measurable incoming investment, simplified licensing times, and more accountability, so there are no problems in the future,’ he said. This initiative aligns with the President’s Asta Citra 2025-2029 development goals, particularly in strengthening digital government, developing smart government, and implementing electronic-based government systems. DSS Jaga Rimba will provide geospatial information integrating data from across the ministry and its nine directorates general, serving as a basis for policy and decision-making. The system features permit process monitoring, rules and regulations analysis to indicate overlapping permits, forest management monitoring, and an early warning system for devegetation and forest cover changes, updated every two weeks. DSS Jaga Rimba also provides real-time forest fire monitoring analysis to enable faster supervision and problem resolution.