Social Forestry in Indonesia: Empowering Communities, Creating Jobs, and Protecting Forests

With more than 120 million hectares of officially designated forest area, Indonesia is home to the world’s third-largest expanse of tropical rainforest. These forests play a vital role in supporting the lives of more than 280 million people by providing much-needed resources and delivering essential ecosystem services.

To preserve these resources while improving community welfare, the Government of Indonesia, over the past decade, has developed the Social Forestry initiative. This initiative aims to enhance livelihoods for forest-dependent communities while ensuring sustainable forest management by expanding equitable access to forest and land resources.

Aligned with this commitment, the World Bank with financing from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) supported the Strengthening of Social Forestry in Indonesia Project (SSF), from 2021 to 2025, across six districts/cities in four provinces: Limapuluh Kota (West Sumatra); South Lampung (Lampung); Dompu, Bima, and Bima City (West Nusa Tenggara); and West Halmahera (North Maluku). By facilitating communities secure Social Forestry permits – rights to access and use forest resources, SSF expanded access to more than 364,000 hectares and supported almost 203,500 beneficiaries, 42 percent of whom are women.

From job creation to empowering women's roles in society, the successful implementation of SSF demonstrates that local communities can manage forests effectively for their livelihoods and environmental preservation, provided they are equipped with knowledge, trust, and legal access.

Forest for the Future: Job Creation, Women Empowerment, and Environmental Sustainability

Todowongi, North Maluku Province

Todowongi Village (West Halmahera) has abundant rattan, but it had long generated little income because residents lacked tools and skills, while furniture-making by hand was slow.

In 2021, SSF supported Social Forestry Business Groups (KUPS) Esa Moi built a rattan workshop that is equipped with machinery, making production three times faster. The group grew from four to 15 members – creating jobs for women and youth, and strengthen household incomes. SSF also enabled value addition beyond rattan, supported women-led KUPS Singina Moi process red ginger into powder, raising the value from around USD4.5 to USD24 per kilogram.

Todowongi shows how legal access and practical support can turn non-timber forest products into local jobs and women-led businesses—making standing forests economically valuable. Watch video here: Forests for the Future: Harmony between Forests and Communities in Strengthening Social Forestry in Indonesia

Stories from Across the Archipelago

Bandar Agung, Lampung Province

In Bandar Agung Village, South Lampung, mangroves that once extended up to a kilometer into the sea, have been steadily eroded by rising sea levels and unsustainable aquaculture practices. This combination severely worsened living conditions in the village and even forced some families to leave.

The turning point in Dede Supriyadi's life as a fisherman came in 2021, when he and local residents formed KUPS Bunut Selatan to restore mangrove and build a new, nature-based economy, supported by an SSF grant. SSF helped establish a mangrove nursery, build water infrastructure and an initial supply of mangrove seedlings for local fishermen.

Today, thousands of mangrove seedlings are cultivated and produced by the KUPS each year, creating new jobs for fishermen’s families and providing an additional income stream during the East Wind season when fishing is limited.

KUPS Bunut Selatan aims to sell 10,000 to 50,000 seedlings, produced by the group and supported by contributions from the wider community. Photo credit: The World Bank

Bima, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Province

In Bima district, many farmers focused on corn to meet raising demand. On hilly land, however, corn’s shallow roots cannot hold soil effectively, accelerating erosion and increasing disaster risks. In 2016, this condition triggered disastrous floods and landslides in Bima. This catastrophe served as a wake-up call for farmers to avoid relying solely on corn.

Firdaus, head of the Lanco Widu Forest Farmers Group (KTH), became one of the pioneers, promoting alternatives to reduce dependence on corn. "Corn requires a large initial investment, while yields are declining," he explained. "But our land, if you are leaving land for a year or two to recover, allowing other plants to regenerate naturally."

With a Social Forestry permit from the government and SSF support, Firdaus began planting avocado, durian, longan, and rambutan on his family’s land. He also invites neighbors – sometimes more than 150 families, to his community hut for training and knowledge sharing.

Firdaus's wife, Julfifah, is equally proactive, leads an all-female KUPS in the village, that processes honey and produces chili sauce from candlenut flowers and kaffir lime leaves harvested from their agroforestry plots.

Together, these stories reinforce an old belief that when given knowledge and trust, communities are able to improve their own lives while simultaneously restoring and protecting ecosystems.

Across these three districts, communities are improving livelihoods, creating jobs, and shaping a foundation that builds links to local and international markets. This solidifies the link between environmental preservation and livelihood stability. Healthier forests and mangroves help reduce floods and erosion, safeguard water and biodiversity, support productivity and, most importantly, secure its own existence for future generations.

Forests can be both a source of livelihood and a foundation for long-term stewardship when communities have legal access and support to grow. The World Bank aims to continue supporting the Government of Indonesia to advance large-scale land restoration in ways that create jobs and strengthen local economies. This way, the forests can sustain people and prosperity for generations to come.