Transmigration Ministry Seeks to Provide Land Certainty for East Kalimantan Forest Conservation
The Ministry of Transmigration (Kementrans) is committed to supporting environmental preservation by seeking to promptly provide legal certainty regarding the status of land currently utilised by the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOSF) as a conservation forest in East Kalimantan. Transmigration Minister M Iftitah Sulaiman Suryanagara stated that approximately 500 hectares of transmigration land are located within the Samboja Lestari conservation area in Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan. “There are about 500 hectares (of transmigration land) whose status we will still study legally, whether it involves the release of the Land Management Right (HPL) or the granting of a right-of-use permit,” said Iftitah in an official statement received in Jakarta on Monday. “It is likely a right-of-use permit that we will grant to the BOS Foundation, with strong support so that the land can be safeguarded and maintained for the next 20 years and beyond,” he added.
He explained that the area was originally an open field of cogon grass. Around the 1990s, the local government together with the community offered the land to the central government for the development of a transmigration programme. A total of 221 families were subsequently settled in Tani Bhakti Village and received Freehold Title certificates (SHM) for nearly 500 hectares out of a total of approximately 2,500 hectares of transmigration Land Management Rights (HPL) in the region. Over time, around 2,000 hectares of the HPL land came into community ownership and were later sold to the BOS Foundation to be restored into a conservation area. Iftitah noted that the environmental foundation subsequently obtained a right-of-use certificate from the government for 1,800 hectares of land in 2004 for a 20-year utilisation period.
The conservation efforts have shown significant impact since 2020, transforming land that originally had only one or two trees per hectare back into dense forest. Currently, the Samboja Lestari conservation area serves as a habitat for various protected wildlife, including approximately 110 orangutans and 76 sun bears. However, when the BOS Foundation applied for an extension of the right-of-use certificate in 2024, issues arose regarding the land status. Part of the area managed by the foundation is still situated on HPL land owned by the Ministry of Transmigration. “Therefore, with strong commitment, we will provide full support to the BOS Foundation so that it can strive to preserve the nature existing in Tani Bhakti,” said Minister Iftitah.
BOS Foundation Regional Manager for East Kalimantan, Aldrianto Priadjati, assessed that collaboration with the Ministry of Transmigration is a crucial step to ensure the sustainability of the area that has been restored for more than 20 years. He stated that BOS has planted more than 473 tree species in the Samboja Lestari conservation area, with 40 percent being fruit trees as a food source for the resident wildlife. In addition to being a wildlife habitat, the area has also been designated as an urban forest and protected zone by the Nusantara Capital City Authority (IKN). “We will try to collaborate with the Ministry of Transmigration to find the best solution for the forest, and this forest is a legacy for our children and grandchildren,” said Aldrianto.