Korea-Indonesia Expand Forest Cooperation for Climate Change Response

South Korea and Indonesia are expanding their forest cooperation to respond to climate change.

The Korea Forest Service announced on the 9th that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Indonesian Ministry of Environment and Forestry for global climate change response.

Officials from the Korea Forest Service and the Indonesian Ministry of Environment and Forestry are taking a commemorative photo after signing a business agreement (renewal). Photo by Korea Forest Service

The agreement includes renewing the existing climate change response agreement, which is set to expire in October this year, until 2029.

Additionally, the scope of mutual cooperation has been expanded from sustainable forest management to "global climate change response" to achieve South Korea's "2050 Carbon Neutrality Strategy" and Indonesia's "Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy (FOLU Net Sink 2030)."

Previously, the Korea Forest Service has maintained forest sector cooperation with Indonesia for over 10 years. Representative examples include promoting a forest ecotourism project utilizing the ecological and landscape resources of Lombok Island from 2015 to 2017, and successfully restoring 1,200 hectares of large-scale wildfire damage in the peatlands of the Jambi region from 2019 to 2022.

With the renewal of the agreement period, the Korea Forest Service plans to complete the establishment of a wildfire disaster management system in South Sumatra Province by 2026, spreading South Korea's advanced forest restoration and forest disaster management system to Indonesia.

Nam Songhee, Director of International Forest Cooperation at the Korea Forest Service, said, "Indonesia is the country with the largest area of peatlands and mangrove forests that absorb and store carbon," adding, "We will contribute to achieving the common goal of 'international carbon reduction' by sharing South Korea's excellent forest management capabilities and forest disaster response system with Indonesia."