Jakarta, January 7, 2025  The Indonesian government’s plan to clear 20 million hectares of forest for industrial food and energy projects signals a grave threat to Indonesia’s climate and biodiversity commitments. The move, announced by Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni, will accelerate biodiversity loss, release a surge of carbon into the atmosphere, and harm Indigenous peoples and local communities who depend on forests for their livelihoods.

“The so-called food and energy sovereignty President Prabowo Subianto envisions will remain empty rhetoric if it relies on massive deforestation. This plan would worsen the climate crisis, triggering cascading impacts across sectors. Converting 20 million hectares of forest for industrial use will increase carbon emissions, fuel fires, and produce hazardous haze, especially if carried out in peat landscapes. Ultimately, this will derail the government’s climate commitments and efforts to safeguard biodiversity,” said Iqbal Damanik, Forest Campaigner for Greenpeace Indonesia.

Indonesia, as a signatory to the International Convention on Biological Diversity, has pledged to halt human-driven extinction by 2030, reduce extinction risks, and preserve genetic diversity to maintain species’ adaptive potential. Meanwhile the country’s enhanced Nationally Determined Contribution under the Paris Climate Agreement targets a 31.89% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 through domestic efforts, and 43.2% with international support. Forest and Land Use (FoLU) reforms are central to achieving these goals, particularly through reduced deforestation.

Theatrical Protest at the Food Estate in Central Kalimantan © Jurnasyanto Sukarno / Greenpeace. © Jurnasyanto Sukarno / Greenpeace
Theatrical Protest at the Food Estate in Central Kalimantan © Jurnasyanto Sukarno / Greenpeace

Yet recent findings from the Global Carbon Project, published in the journal Earth System Science Data in late 2023, reveal that global carbon dioxide emissions reached record highs last year. Indonesia ranked as the second-largest emitter from land-use activities, despite the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warning of escalated climate risks facing Indonesia, such as droughts, heatwaves, floods, and storms.

“The Minister of Forestry has yet to disclose where the 20 million hectares he says are earmarked for industrial conversion are located. Our analysis suggests this vast land requirement will inevitably trigger deforestation in Indonesia’s natural forests. The government must implement a total deforestation ban if we want to avert climate disaster,” said Sekar Banjaran Aji, Forest Campaigner for Greenpeace Indonesia.

Alarmingly, Indonesia’s new administration is on track to continue the deforestation trajectory of the previous government. Under then-President Joko Widodo, Indonesia allocated a deforestation quota of 10.43 million hectares from 2021 to 2030, as outlined in the Folu Net Sink 2030 Operational Plan. This deforestation, equivalent to nearly a quarter of Sumatra’s land area, would release 10.1 gigatons of CO2.

The Prabowo administration seems no different. The president’s recent statement advocating palm oil expansion while dismissing deforestation concerns is a dangerous stance for Indonesia’s forests. His remarks reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of forest ecosystems and the EU’s deforestation-free market regulations. Prabowo’s narrative of food and energy sovereignty is nothing more than empty rhetoric, as his administration’s plans push Indonesia further away from these goals.

“How can the public not assume that food estate programs are merely a pretext for expanding palm oil plantations? Instead of addressing the chaos in palm oil governance, Prabowo seems intent on perpetuating it. His stance on palm oil and deforestation spells disaster for Indigenous communities, like West Papua’s Awyu people, who are currently fighting to protect their customary forests from industrial plantation expansion,” Sekar concluded.

Media Contacts:

Arie Rompas, Head of Forest Campaign, Greenpeace Indonesia, +62 811-5200-822

Igor O’Neill, Greenpeace Indonesia, [email protected], +61 414 288 424