Reforestation fund reaches Rp 1.14t

JAKARTA (JP): The Ministry of Forestry and Plantations announced yesterday that the reforestation fund reached a total of Rp 1.14 trillion (US$100 million) at the end of March this year.

The ministry's secretary general Oetomo said the fund consisted of Rp 669 billion in reforestation fees collected from timber companies and Rp 472 billion in interest earnings.

Oetomo said the ministry had collected a total of Rp 6.84 trillion in reforestation fees and earned Rp 2.83 billion in interest since April 1, 1989.

He said that Rp 4.99 trillion of the total fees and Rp 2.2 billion of the interest earnings had been used to finance forest rehabilitation programs and the development of timber estates.

He said the ministry would allocate a further Rp 1.17 trillion of the fees and Rp 154 billion of the interest earnings to fund forestry programs in the current financial year.

The reforestation fund has been built up through collecting mandatory fees from forest concessionaires which the government imposes to ensure that forests are managed in an environmentally sustainable manner. Payments vary according to the species of tree harvested and the volume of timber sold.

The reforestation fund was included in the state budget for the first time this year, where it is treated as nontax receipts. Previously, the funds were transferred into a Ministry of Forestry bank account and their allocation and use governed by presidential decree.

According to existing regulations, the funds collected from timber companies should be used to finance forest rehabilitation programs while interest earnings on the fund are earmarked for the development of industrial forest plantations.

Minister of Forestry and Plantations Muslimin Nasution said yesterday that his ministry would not give up in its efforts to recover reforestation funds used to finance non-forestry projects.

However, he said that in several cases his ministry required a presidential decree to force defaulters to return the money.

"The loans were granted through presidential decrees so they can only be returned through presidential decrees," he said. (gis)