Forestry Minister Prepares 87,000-Hectare Orangutan Preservation Area

Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni is preparing an 87,000-hectare preservation area for orangutans in East Kalimantan as part of efforts to strengthen the protection of Indonesia’s endemic wildlife habitat. “This has been in process for a long time. If I am not mistaken, this multi-stakeholder preservation area covers 87,000 hectares,” Raja Antoni stated in Jakarta on Monday. He added that the Ministry of Forestry will soon issue a letter of support for the orangutan conservation efforts initiated with various parties, while also preparing a decree to establish an Integrated Orangutan Conservation Working Group for the Keraitan Landscape. He assessed that the entire process has been lengthy and is now at the final administrative stage. “We are now in the final phase. I will issue a letter of support for orangutan conservation and habitat protection by the Conservation Action Network, followed by the decree for the Integrated Orangutan Conservation Working Group for the Keraitan Landscape. God willing, this will be completed in the next day or two,” he said. According to Raja Antoni, establishing the preservation area is a crucial step to strengthen orangutan habitat protection through collaboration between the government, conservation organisations, and business permit holders in the area. The preservation zone will serve as a wildlife corridor connecting orangutan habitats across the Keraitan Landscape. “So that what we have been seeing, orangutans displaced in mining areas, and now baby orangutans, we can save more of them by establishing a preservation area as proposed by our colleagues,” he said. He also confirmed he is intensively monitoring the development of this preservation area with the Conservation Action Network, which is working on the ground. “CAN explained that all companies in the area have declared their commitment and signed agreements to support the establishment of the preservation area,” said Raja Antoni. “It is hoped this will maintain the habitat while accelerating the rescue of orangutans affected by the loss of their living space,” he added.