TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia’s Ministry of Forestry and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) today launched a Rp74.6 billion (US$4.4 million) project to strengthen the country’s capacity to manage invasive alien species, with funding support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
The initiative is part of broader efforts to safeguard Indonesia’s globally significant biodiversity.
Invasive alien species — plants, animals, and other organisms introduced intentionally or accidentally into environments where they do not naturally occur — pose major threats to ecosystems, native species, and human well-being.
According to a 2023 report by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), these species are a leading driver of biodiversity loss, responsible for up to 60 percent of global extinctions, and cause economic, health, and food security losses exceeding US$423 billion annually.
Indonesia ranks among Southeast Asia’s most vulnerable countries, with more than half of its 54 national parks reporting invasions, according to 2021 Ministry of Forestry data.
Rising trade, travel, transport, land use changes, and climate change have accelerated the spread of invasive species across the archipelago.
The project, Strengthening Capacities for Management of Invasive Alien Species (SMIAS) in Indonesia, will focus on two priority conservation areas with high endemic biodiversity: Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in East Java and Bantimurung-Bulusaraung National Park in South Sulawesi.
Bantimurung-Bulusaraung is also home to the world’s second-largest karst formation.
“The SMIAS project is a strategic initiative to strengthen governance, capacity, and collaboration in managing invasive alien species, from policy to site level. Both areas are ecologically distinctive and of high conservation value, yet face pressures that accelerate invasions,” said Satyawan Pudyatmoko, Director General of Natural Resources and Ecosystem Conservation at the Ministry of Forestry, speaking through Ahmad Munawir, Director of Species and Genetic Conservation, at the project’s inception workshop in Bogor, West Java.
The program will reinforce Indonesia’s policies, regulations, institutional capacity, and multi-sectoral coordination to prevent, control, and eradicate invasive species.
It emphasizes sustainable practices in close collaboration with indigenous communities, local communities, women, and youth.
“By protecting Indonesia’s rich biodiversity, this project will support the livelihoods and food security of communities that depend on forests, including indigenous communities. FAO is committed to helping Indonesia achieve better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life for all,” said Rajendra Aryal, FAO Representative in Indonesia and Timor-Leste.
The initiative is expected to improve ecosystem health and boost the productivity and resilience of more than 2,000 people, through sustainable use of non-timber forest products (NTFPs), medicinal plants, and livestock forage.
The SMIAS project also supports Indonesia in achieving national targets and international commitments, including the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and the Sustainable Development Goals.
It aims to reduce the introduction and establishment of invasive alien species by at least 50 percent by 2030.
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