Jambi supports social forestry's inclusion in National Strategic Programme to alleviate poverty

The Forestry Office (Dishut) of Jambi Province fully supports the proposal to make the social forestry scheme part of the National Strategic Programme (PSN), as it aligns with the mandate of Presidential Instruction (Inpres) Number 8 of 2025 concerning the Optimisation of Poverty Alleviation and the Elimination of Extreme Poverty.

“We fully support it if it has become a national priority,” said Head of the Jambi Province Forestry Office, Andri Yushar Andria, in Jambi City on Tuesday.

According to Andri, social forestry is currently a serious concern and priority for both central and regional governments. The programme aims to provide legal access rights to local communities so they can manage forest areas around their settlements through various schemes, such as community forests, community plantation forests, and customary forests.

Through social forestry, he continued, communities are encouraged to develop various types of leading commodities suited to the potential of their respective regions.

Based on data from the Jambi Forestry Office, there are currently 397 groups working on 230,000 hectares of state forest or private forest areas through the social forestry scheme. The programme has involved around 49,000 families spread across 10 areas, including Kerinci, Merangin, Bungo, Tebo, Sarolangun, Batang Hari, Muaro Jambi, East Tanjung Jabung, West Tanjung Jabung, and Sungai Penuh City.

In addition to the land already being utilised, the government has also set aside 363,000 hectares of land that can be used through new applications for interested community groups.

The highest award serves as recognition for the hard work of the Serampas Customary Law Community (MHA) in sustainably protecting customary forests while developing economic enterprises that bring prosperity. Furthermore, the Bujang Raba social forestry group in Bungo Regency has also marked an important milestone in community-based forest management, becoming one of Indonesia’s forestry carbon hubs.

“Jambi is one of the largest in Sumatra regarding social forestry achievements. So, by granting legal access rights to the community, the hope is that extreme poverty can be reduced and residents’ welfare can increase,” said Andri.