Strenthening Bilateral and Private Sector Synergy, Ministry of Forestry Enhances Human Capacity for Forest and Land Fire Control
Moving forward to strengthen preparedness against the threat of forest and land fires (karhutla), the Ministry of Forestry (Kemenhut) of the Republic of Indonesia—through the Directorate of Forest Fire Control and the Bureau of Public Relations and International Cooperation—officially opened the Basic Training on Forest Fire Suppression in Ogan Komering Ilir (OKI), South Sumatra, on Monday (8/6/2026).
The Head of the Bureau of Public Relations and International Cooperation, Ristianto Pribadi, emphasized in his opening remarks that sustainable forest management can only be achieved through strong collaboration among stakeholders.
“This tactical step is the fruit of cross-border and private-sector synergy, designed to strengthen forest fire prevention capacity directly from the upstream level, particularly within concession areas,” said Ristianto.
Ristianto stated that this activity is a concrete implementation of the strategic partnership between the Indonesian Ministry of Forestry and the Korea Forest Service (KFS) to strengthen bilateral collaboration. In line with the commitments in the MoU on Forest Fire Management and Post-Fire Restoration Cooperation, both countries are fully committed to reinforcing prevention, preparedness, rapid response, and post-fire restoration.
The Ministry’s involvement in this event underscores that private sector discipline in keeping concession areas fire-free is a crucial instrument for achieving national climate targets.
Representing the Director of Forest Fire Control, the Head of the Sub-Directorate for Forest Fire Prevention, M. Hariyanto, mentioned that the Indonesian government continues to elevate its commitment to reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. The independent target based on national capacity has now risen from 41% to 43%, aligning with the Forestry and Other Land Use (FOLU) Net Sink 2030 policy.
“This training is not just a routine agenda, but a long-term tactical preventive measure. This is a golden momentum to introduce the latest facility, the Forest and Land Fire Management Center at Daops OKI, which is being developed as a modern learning hub funded through the cooperation between KFS and the Ministry of Forestry,” Hariyanto said.
Hariyanto hopes that in the future, this center will significantly contribute to boosting forest fire control capacity—not only internally for the Ministry, but also for the private sector, local communities, and regional governments.
International cooperation stands as a core pillar in these prevention efforts, particularly through the full support of the South Korean Government. The Co-Director of the Korea-Indonesia Forest Cooperation Center (KIFC), Jeong Cheol Ho, shared that for the past five years, his party has been fully committed to building a forest fire management system in OKI with backing from the Korea Forest Service.
This synergy in forest fire control also received positive appreciation from the private sector. A representative from POSCO International in Indonesia, Kong Byoung Sun, stated that this initiative serves as evidence of the close and harmonious bilateral relations between Indonesia and Korea.
“Through Manggala Agni (Indonesia’s forest fire brigade), the transfer of knowledge and human resource capacity building in the fire mitigation sector continues to accelerate for a greener earth. Through this intensive training, participants are expected to return to their respective work areas with full preparedness, capable of responding to potential hotspots within minutes, and maintaining solid coordination on the ground,” Kong concluded.
