VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

A view of a peatland area in Jambi, Sumatra Island. ANTARA FOTO/Wahdi Septiawan/aww

Germany, through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, allocated a three-million euro grant for peat protection and management in North Kalimantan (Kaltara), conducted jointly with the Environmental Affairs and Forestry (KLHK) Ministry.

The ministry's Directorate of Peat Damage Control with GIZ here on Tuesday (June 9) spoke of the Implementation Agreement of the PROPEAT Project for the protection and management of peat ecosystems in Kaltara.

Indonesia expressed gratitude to the German Government for support to expedite the implementation of protection and management of peat ecosystems in Indonesia, Sigit Reliantoro, secretary of the ministry's Directorate General of Environmental Pollution and Damage Control (PPKL), noted in a written statement received in Jakarta on Thursday.

"This cooperation is expected to offer an opportunity for Indonesia, which is on the forefront in the protection of sustainable peat ecosystems, to provide experience and training in Indonesia to other countries having tropical peatlands, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo," Reliantoro noted.

Implementation of the PROPEAT project is part of the collaboration between the governments of Indonesia and Germany in the protection and management of peat ecosystems.

"The project is being implemented to manage the land in a more ecological manner for a sustainable peat and wetland ecosystem," he noted.

The project also encompasses plans to implement five social forestry programs on peatlands in North Kalimantan and strengthen three forestry institutions, including the Forest Management Unit (KPH), in implementing gender mainstreaming guidelines during the process of planning and implementing sustainable and integrated peatland land use.

Some 60 percent of the budget will be channeled for field implementation activities, while 40 percent will be spent to cover administration or overhead costs. December 2021 is the deadline set for completing the activities.

GIZ Country Director for Indonesia, ASEAN, and Timor Leste Martin Hansen noted that the cooperation between Indonesia and Germany has been ongoing for some four decades, and Indonesia is a vital partner for Germany, including in the area of environment and forestry.

Cooperation for peat preservation is crucial not only for Indonesia but also for the world, and hence, Germany strongly supports it, according to Hansen. (ANTARA)