Government Launches Strategic Biodiversity Status Documents for Java to Papua
The Indonesian government and various stakeholders have officially compiled four strategic documents on the Status of Biodiversity for the Bali-Nusa Tenggara, Java, Maluku, and Papua regions. These documents function as supporting pillars for the Indonesian Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (IBSAP) 2025-2045, presenting an up-to-date scientific portrait of the characteristics, potential, and management challenges of the nation’s natural wealth at the ecosystem, species, and genetic levels.
Director of Environment at the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas, Nizhar Marizi, stated that biodiversity management has become a priority in the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) 2025-2029. This step is implemented through the second of the eight national goals (Asta Cita), which focuses on a green economy. “This commitment is strengthened by the formulation of the IBSAP 2025-2045 in 2024 as a compass for managing Indonesia’s biodiversity,” Nizhar said in Jakarta on Thursday (18/7).
The availability of up-to-date scientific data is considered a crucial foundation for evidence-based policy making. By understanding the biological wealth it possesses, the government can determine steps for protection, preservation, and sustainable utilisation, which serve as development capital towards a Golden Indonesia 2045. Nizhar emphasised that the document’s preparation involved a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, engaging academics, regional governments, businesses, civil society organisations, and local communities to accommodate various perspectives and data sources.
In line with this, the Director of Biodiversity Conservation at the Ministry of Environment/BPLH, Inge Retnowati, referred to biodiversity as national capital with high social, economic, and ecological value. She stressed the importance of maintaining a balance of these values through scientifically based governance. Indonesia is estimated to be home to more than 1.5 million species, with over 30 percent being endemic, yet significant challenges remain as many species have still not been identified and require more in-depth research and exploration.
Head of the Life and Environmental Research Organisation at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Andes Hamuraby Rozak, expressed hope that the document would become a scientific reference for development policies aligned with conservation. “Science must be the foundation and collaboration the strength to safeguard Indonesia’s biological wealth,” he explained. The presence of this biodiversity status document is expected to build a basis for assessing the economic value of ecosystem services, while ensuring that Indonesia’s natural heritage is preserved for future generations.