Description
The Role of Indigenous Communities Considered Key to the Success of the Green for Riau Program
The involvement of indigenous communities is considered key to the success of the Green for Riau program, which promotes sustainable forest management in Riau Province. This is because most of the program's target areas are located in areas that have long been the habitat of indigenous communities.
Wahyudi, Chairman of the Kampar chapter of the Indigenous Peoples' Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN), stated that approximately 80 percent of the approximately 2.6 million hectares of the Green for Riau program's intervention area overlaps with indigenous territories. Therefore, he believes the program's success depends heavily on the involvement of indigenous communities from the planning stage through implementation.
"Green for Riau will not succeed if indigenous communities are left behind," Wahyudi said.
He noted that of the approximately 312 indigenous communities registered in Riau, only approximately 18 customary areas have been legally recognized through regional head decrees. Meanwhile, only four customary forests have been officially recognized. According to Wahyudi, this condition could become an obstacle if the environmentally-based development program requires formal legality as a basis for implementing activities.