Indonesia and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have launched a $4.4 million project to bolster the country’s ability to manage invasive alien species, which pose a significant threat to its biodiversity and economy.
Indonesia Launches $4.4 Million Project to Combat Invasive Species
The initiative, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), aims to strengthen Indonesia’s capacity to address the growing problem of invasive alien species – plants, animals, and other organisms introduced into environments where they don’t naturally occur.
According to a 2023 report by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), invasive species are a leading driver of biodiversity loss, contributing to up to 60 percent of global extinctions and causing economic, health, and food security losses exceeding $423 billion annually.
Indonesia is particularly vulnerable, with more than half of its 54 national parks reporting invasions as of 2021, according to Ministry of Forestry data. Factors such as increased trade, travel, land use changes, and climate change are accelerating the spread of these species across the archipelago.
The project, titled “Strengthening Capacities for Management of Invasive Alien Species (SMIAS) in Indonesia,” will focus on two key conservation areas: 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,” 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 work to improve Indonesia’s policies, regulations, and institutional capacity for preventing, controlling, and eradicating invasive species, with an emphasis on 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,” said Rajendra Aryal, FAO Representative in Indonesia and Timor-Leste. “FAO is committed to helping Indonesia achieve better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life for all.”
The initiative is expected to benefit over 2,000 people by improving ecosystem health and increasing the productivity and resilience of sustainable use of non-timber forest products (NTFPs), medicinal plants, and livestock forage.
The SMIAS project also supports Indonesia in meeting its national targets and international commitments, including the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and the Sustainable Development Goals. The project aims to reduce the introduction and establishment of invasive alien species by at least 50 percent by 2030.
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