Indonesia Affirms Development of Credible Carbon Trading Governance

The Indonesian government has affirmed its commitment to building credible, transparent, and internationally standard-compliant governance for forestry carbon trading at the business forum of the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) and the Indonesia-America Chamber of Commerce (IACC) in New York, United States. Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni stated that Indonesia is entering a new era of forest management that no longer focuses solely on timber but also on carbon value, biodiversity, environmental services, and sustainable green economy. “Indonesia has approximately 120 million hectares of tropical forests, opening opportunities for global partnerships in climate investment and the development of sustainable forestry business,” the Minister said in a statement received in Jakarta on Tuesday. He explained that the issuance of Forestry Ministerial Regulation (Permenhut) Number 6 of 2026 serves as an important milestone in the transformation of Indonesia’s forestry sector. Furthermore, the regulation strengthens the integration of the national carbon market with international standards, including ICVCM principles and Article 6 mechanisms under the Paris Agreement. “Thus, Indonesian forestry carbon credits are expected to become increasingly competitive in the global carbon market,” Raja Antoni stated. In addition to carbon trading, the Ministry of Forestry is also promoting the development of multi-business forestry schemes. According to the Minister, the multi-business forestry approach will enhance investment attractiveness by providing income diversification while strengthening Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) aspects in Indonesia’s forestry business model. The Indonesian government has also emphasised strengthening forestry governance through the submission of the Forest Reference Emission Level to the UNFCCC, the operationalisation of the National Registry System (SRN), and the Indonesia’s FOLU Net Sink 2030 target to make the forestry and land use sector a net carbon sink by the end of this decade. Meanwhile, the Head of Public Relations and International Cooperation Bureau of the Ministry of Forestry, Ristianto Pribadi, conveyed that the IETA-IACC business forum serves as an important momentum to expand green investment networks while strengthening Indonesia’s position as one of the world’s centres for forestry-based carbon economy development.