Indonesia and UK boost biodiversity and conservation funding

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The governments of Indonesia and the United Kingdom are scaling up bilateral cooperation in nature conservation, biodiversity protection and sustainable financing models for protected areas.

The renewed commitment was finalized during a bilateral meeting between Indonesian Minister of Forestry Raja Juli Antoni and the UK’s Special Representative for Nature Ruth Davis during London Climate Action Week in London.

A central focus of the diplomatic talks was the implementation of Indonesia's newly formed Landscape and Iconic Species Conservation Task Force, legally established earlier this year under Presidential Decree Number 8 of 2026, according to Minister Antoni in his statement.

The task force is mandated to mobilize innovative international financing, fast-track Indonesia’s ambitious 2030 Forestry and Other Land Use (FOLU) Net Sink climate targets and develop sustainable management models for protected areas.

Antoni expressed appreciation for the British government's ongoing alliance, which includes an initial funding of 2 million poundsterling cleared last April to kickstart joint operations.

"Indonesia already has a strong legal foundation and political support at the highest level to strengthen nature conservation," Antoni stated.

"The next challenge is translating this mandate into policy reforms, replicable pilot projects and measurable conservation outcomes for both communities and the environment,” he added.

The minister clarified that the pursuit of innovative financing models is designed to complement existing state funding, firmly denying any move toward the privatization of national parks.

He assured that all financial frameworks will strictly adhere to ecological integrity, state transparency, and equitable benefits for local communities living around protected areas.

As a practical testing ground for the UK-Indonesia alliance, both delegations reviewed the ongoing development of the Peusangan Elephant Conservation Initiative (PECI) in Sumatra—which serves as a flagship landscape model that integrates keystone species protection, community empowerment and long-term investment mobilization.

Indonesia currently manages 57 national parks covering nearly 18 million hectares of crucial ecosystems.

Antoni noted that the government is creating custom funding plans for each region, utilizing blended finance, philanthropy and public financing schemes to close the significant conservation funding gap.

The bilateral meeting concluded with both nations agreeing to continuously strengthen dialogue and explore concrete opportunities to adress global biodiversity loss and climate change.

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Translator: Arnidhya Nur Zhafira, Yashinta Difa

Editor: M Razi Rahman

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