Indonesia's forests disappearing by the day, experts reveal
Indonesia's forests disappearing by the day, experts reveal
By Bernard Estrade
BOGOR, Indonesia (AFP): Indonesia's forests are disappearing
at a rate of 4,000 hectares, or 9,900 acres, a day and the
government appears to be unable to do anything about it, experts
said.
"The situation is getting worse and we should do something,"
said Jeffrey Sayer, director general of the Center for
International Forestry Research (CIFOR).
The center recently organized a seminar of conservationists,
World Bank economists, logging industry representatives and
government agencies in Bogor, southeast of the capital Jakarta,
where the government's apparent inability to curb illegal logging
was a focus of concern.
The country's massive jungles and rain forests are second only
to the Amazon in terms of area and are home to some of the rarest
animals in the world.
Their exploitation has been an "important contributor to
growth" for Indonesia's struggling economy, according to a World
Bank report published at the conference.
But the bank warned: "Its overall outcome, rapid deforestation
and highly inequitable distribution of benefits, is highly
unsatisfactory."
It said the logging was benefiting "the same few
conglomerates" and "has subordinated the traditional rights of
indigenous forest dwellers and communities."
This "has resulted in conflict and created one of the most
serious social problems facing Indonesia at present," the report
said.
The annual legal production of logs is 21.4 million cubic
metres (749 million cubic feet), in line with the forests'
ability to regenerate, but actual production is more than three
times that at some 77.9 million cubic metres (2.72 billion cubic
feet), according to the report.
That's about 1.5 million hectares (3.7 million acres) of
forest which disappear every year, mostly to make way for quick
yield palm plantations.
The felled trees feed demand for wood products, especially
paper and plywood.
The mills, built by major companies with the help of
international loans which they either cannot or will not repay,
are monitored by the Indonesian Bank Reconstruction Agency
(IBRA).
The IBRA is in charge of billions of dollars of assets but has
come under fire for being driven by narrow political or
commercial interests.
Government and IBRA officials taking part in the conference
ruled out closing the mills for economic and social reasons.
They face "a very bleak future but there is no consensus on
the closing of the mills," said an economist, adding that the
debts of the sector in the IBRA portfolio amounted to some eight
billion dollars.
"It is a highly political debate," he added.
Participants in the seminar noted the efforts of the new
Indonesian administration to allow for greater indigenous
participation in the exploitation of the forest's riches.
But they were in agreement that this in itself did not
constitute a guarantee that they would be better protected.
"A form of central control is probably needed," noted the
CIFOR's Sayer.
"Some form of resource transfer or compensation may well be
needed to induce local communities and regional governments to
retain their forests intact," said the World Bank.
Uma Lele, one of the authors of the World Bank report, said
"there is a major gap between international expectations of how
the tropical forests must be managed and the expectations of the
local communities for their immediate benefits."