The Minister of Forestry,  Zulkifli Hasan, and the Special Army General Commander, Wisnu Bawa Tenaya, along with the Military Commander of Kalimantan Region, Subekti, attended the closing ceremony of the Equator Expedition 2012 in Long Alango, Bahau Hulu sub district of Malinau district on 16 July 2012. They were welcomed with traditional dancing and conferred the customary title as custodians of the forest by the Customary Chief of Bahau Hulu, Anyi Apuy. In his speech, the Minister said that forests are important for the livelihood of Dayak communities and criticized the forestry policy of the past which allowed mismanagement and caused damage to their forest by granting concessions. Minister Zulkifli Hasan pointed out that the Government of Indonesia undertakes to improve forest management by issuing the Moratorium in 2011 and involving the communities in forest management through social forestry schemes like the ‘Hutan Desa’ concept.

The Regent of Malinau, Yansen TP, and Chief of Malinau Indigenous Forum, Martin Labo, also participated and delivered presentations. Martin Labo explained about the collaborative management of Kayan Mentarang National Park with stakeholders such as the local government, local communities, national park management, and NGO. The Regent emphasized in his speech the conditions in Malinau especially in remote sub-districts adjacent to Malaysia. He explained that the legal status of the area makes development difficult since most of the area is surrounded by protected forest and national park. The Minister took initiative by inviting the Regent and related stakeholders to discuss about the development in border areas including infrastructure across forest areas. He also promised to visit Malinau again in September for further discussions.

FORCLIME team members from Malinau were invited and attended the ceremony.

Created: 24 July 2012

FORCLIME Malinau conducted a GIS Training from 4th till 6th of July for technical staff of the District Mining and Energy Service and Plantation Service. Participants were supported in developing basic GIS skills to be used later for Micro-hydro power assessment and Cocoa Inventories (within the framework of FORCLIME component 3).

The training was developed and led by FORCLIME GIS advisers Pak Budi Susanto and Mr. Timo Beiermann. The objective is to provide more flexible options for training basic practical skills not adressed by other trainings yet. The training can be conducted on the spot and provides basic skills to participants who have never worked with ArcGIS before.  In theoretical lessons and practical exercises participants get in touch with a technology which is essential for managing natural resources. Participants are trained in GPS handling, georeferencing of analogue maps, generating and editing spatial data sets, and creating layouts.  Environmental agencies in the District highly appreciate the training as it increases the capacity of field staff in environmental monitoring in a district nearly the size of the Netherlands.

The enthusiasm and interest of the participants was not compromised by occasional power failure and limited air conditioning facilities. Participants stated that they were looking forward to applying their newly acquired skills and getting the opportunity for attending further GIS trainings.

For more information, please contact:
budi.susanto@giz.de or timo.beiermann@giz.de

Created: 23 July 2012

Starting July and August 2012 two technical advisors or development advisors from Germany will support the local government of Berau district in the field of Community-Based Forest Management and Geographic Information Systems. The head of the local forestry service, Mr. Darwis Syukur, warmly welcomed the two new experts, Mr. Manuel Haas and Mr. Benjamin Korff, at a first meeting on 09th of July.

As part of the FORCLIME Programme, the two experts will be supporting the programme activities in Berau, by providing training and advisory services and helping to design and conduct activities together with the local government agencies, mainly the local forestry service. They will especially support the development of REDD Demonstration Activities and the establishment of Forest Management Units (FMU). The two experts will be living and working in Berau district for at least two years.

The long-term deployment of European development advisors that work and live closely embedded in local structures of developing countries is a special instrument of the German Technical Cooperation  and supported by the Specialised Business Unit “Development Service” of GIZ. The aim of the deployment of development advisors is to provide technical advisory services and to promote international learning and intercultural understanding.

Created: 17 July 2012