JAKARTA, INDONESIA – Today, Climate Policy Initiative (CPI), a global advisory and analysis organization, and the University of Palangka Raya (UNPAR), announced an analytical program to support the sustainable oil palm pilot project in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. The Production and Protection program is funded through an initial three-year, $1.6 million grant from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation.

CPI and UNPAR will use the funds in partnership with local stakeholders to support the Government of Central Kalimantan’s vision for strong green growth underpinned by a high-yield, low environmental-impact oil palm sector.

Research will be conducted locally by teams at a new Centre of Excellence, based in the Faculty of Agriculture at UNPAR, in close consultation with communities, businesses, and government decision makers, to identify options that increase agricultural productivity, expand the use of degraded lands, and protect high conservation value areas. The initiative’s first three-year phase will focus on building robust evidence and technical capacity to support government-led efforts to implement its plans for a sustainable oil palm sector.  By focusing learning around a pilot project, the initiative aims to demonstrate piece-by-piece what it takes to de-risk investments in oil palm across entire landscapes and ensure that communities, local decision makers, businesses, and small holders all benefit from economic growth and development.

“Through this partnership with Climate Policy Initiative, UNPAR hopes to develop a model for achieving Central Kalimantan’s goals of strong economic growth for businesses and communities, while protecting valuable natural resources, that can be used for a model for other regions in Indonesia,” said Dr. Yusurum Jagau, Dean of Agriculture. “We look forward to working with CPI to provide robust analysis that will support Central Kalimantan’s Green Growth Strategy, increase output of its most important agricultural product, palm oil, relocate palm oil production onto suitable low-carbon lands, and maintain critical natural resources necessary for future economic development.”

The program builds from a foundation that includes Central Kalimantan’s action plan for green house gasses, REDD+ strategy (Strategy to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation), the province’s groundbreaking regulation on sustainable palm oil, and the Governor’s own roadmap to achieve sustainable palm oil. The Governor of Central Kalimantan has also created a working group consisting of government, business, academia, and civil society representatives who will advise the local government on policy to achieve green growth with palm oil.

“The right policies and programs are essential to drive investment in ways that optimize Indonesia’s natural resources and underpin long-term growth and prosperity,” said Thomas C. Heller, Executive Director of CPI. CPI’s Indonesia program is led by Jane Wilkinson, an expert in climate finance and REDD+, who has lived and worked in Indonesia.

Central Kalimantan is one of Indonesia’s largest provinces with 7.75 million hectares of forest and some of the largest expanses of tropical peatlands in the world. These areas are not only home to Indonesia’s unique biodiversity but they also provide ecosystem services such as fresh water and livelihoods to communities, and maintain a substantial carbon stock.

As a first step in the analysis, CPI has published a summary of natural capital assessment, which may inform spatial planning in the region. For more information, visit www.ClimatePolicyInitiative.org and www.UPR.ac.id

University of Palangka Raya is the first and oldest state university in Central Kalimantan. UNPAR provides policy and technical support to the Central Kalimantan provincial government, including through the development of policy briefs that led to the province’s sustainable palm oil regulations and the Regional Action Plan for GHG Mitigation.

Climate Policy Initiative is an analysis and advisory organization that works to improve the most important energy and land use policies in the world. An independent, not-for-profit organization supported in part by a grant from the Open Society Foundations, CPI has offices and programs in Brazil, China, Europe, India, Indonesia, and the United States.

For further information, please contact:
Ruby Barcklay
Climate Policy Initiative
Mobile: +1 510 612 5180
Email: Ruby.barcklay@climatepolicyinitiative.org