ITTO aids forestry projects

JAKARTA (JP): The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), has signed an agreement to provide a US$1.57 million grant to finance four forestry projects in Indonesia dedicated to sustainable forestry management.

The new grant increases ITTO's donations to the Indonesian government to US$12 million, which is allocated to 10 forestry projects, ITTO's executive director B.C.Y Freezailah said following the signing of the grant Saturday.

The new grant consists of US$672,774 for the Indonesian Ecolabeling Agency to finance the training program on the assessment of sustainable forest management and US$770,000 for the Prosea Foundation to finance its project on the books and database on the medicinal and poisonous plants of Southeast Asia.

The remaining US$125,862 will be given to the Ministry of Forestry's Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Preservation and the Bogor Agricultural Institute to draw up national guidelines on how to protect tropical forests against fire.

Freezailah said the grant clearly demonstrated the confidence of the international community to assist Indonesia achieve sustainable forest management and optimize the utilization of its rich forest resources. (gis)