Indonesia forest pledge tests region’s Indigenous promises

Indonesia’s latest promise to recognise 1.4 million hectares of Indigenous and customary forests by 2029 has been greeted with hope and scepticism in equal measure. The plan was announced by Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni on 4 November and framed as a way to cut deforestation while strengthening community rights. Mongabay

Advocates say the policy repeats past promises that have stalled in practice. The long‑delayed Indigenous Rights Bill remains before parliament, and communities must still navigate a slow, costly local‑by‑local process before customary forests can be formally recognised. That is a key reason less than 2% of the 23 million hectares mapped by Indonesia’s Indigenous land registry have legal recognition today.

Tensions on the ground compound the problem. A recent analysis found roughly one quarter of Indigenous territories overlap with logging, oil and gas, or mining concessions. Indonesia’s “strategic national projects” program gives developers wide powers to acquire land; rights groups, the national human rights commission and UN experts have logged complaints including forced evictions, violence and environmental harm, particularly in Papua.

The international backdrop is busy. Brazil used COP30 in Belém to introduce the Tropical Forest Forever Facility, pitched as an endowment‑style fund to pay countries and local stewards for keeping forests standing. Early reporting points to cautious optimism and active debate over its design and debt risks, alongside news of significant, still‑forming pledges.

Whether Indonesia’s target becomes a milestone or another missed chance will come down to legal fixes and delivery. Muhammad Arman from the Indigenous Peoples’ Alliance of the Archipelago argues the 1.4‑million‑hectare goal focuses on “low‑hanging fruit” – areas without corporate overlaps that are easier to formalise… and says broader reform is needed to unlock recognition at scale.

For regional partners and buyers, the signal is clear. Progress that turns mapped customary land into recognised customary forests would reduce conflict risk and make traceability easier. Lack of movement would leave the status quo unchanged – contested land, uncertain paperwork and persistent disputes.