Description and challenge
Forest conversion for agriculture is a major threat to Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park (BBSNP), which at around 318,000 hectares forms part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site and provides essential ecosystem services and habitat for threatened species, including Sumatran rhino, elephant and tiger.
Smallholder coffee farmers in the region tend to have low productivity and profitability, with limited access to extension services, inputs, finance and markets. Around 26,000 hectares of forest were lost within BBSNP between 2000 and 2015 and it is estimated that 10% of the park is under active coffee cultivation. More than 26,000 tons of Robusta coffee are produced within the park each year, comprising up to 5% of Indonesia’s annual production volume. This poses a major risk to companies sourcing from the region and not only threatens this important ecosystem but future agricultural productivity and the security of farmer livelihoods.
Our approach
BBS KEKAL is built on collaboration and a recognition that only through working together and by actively supporting farmers in vulnerable areas around the forest frontier can we find a lasting and viable solution to deforestation.
Within BBSNP, BBS KEKAL is working with the Ministry of Environment and Forestry to develop a roadmap to address encroachment and restore priority areas, while continued monitoring and patrols in collaboration with the National Park Authority reduce the risk of future deforestation.
Outside of BBSNP, in collaboration with local government, WCS, several leading coffee companies, Hanns R. Neumann Stiftung and other partners are working to reduce encroachment pressures and improve livelihoods by supporting farmers in the ‘first mile’ of the park buffer zone to transition to deforestation-free Robusta production. This includes support for GAP training and improved farmer organization, as well as through performance-based incentives, such as improved access to finance and markets. The program is underpinned by a landscape monitoring and farm mapping system, which registers farmers and enables tailored support and incentives, and the verification of deforestation-free production. Government engagement from the subnational to national-level facilitates the enabling conditions for interventions and supports scaling up across the landscape.
Key Partners
BBS KEKAL builds on a shared vision for the landscape, established through a Collective Statement of Intent signed by 16 organisations in April 2018:
- The Association of Coffee Suppliers Lampung
- Berindo Jaya (Neumann Kaffee Gruppe)
- Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park Authority
- Enveritas
- Hanns R. Neumann Stiftung
- PT Indo Cafco (ECOM)
- Jacobs Douwe Egberts B.V.
- Karya Bakti Ulubelu Farmer Group
- Lampung Barat District Plantation Office
- Louis Dreyfus Company
- PT Mayora Indah
- Nestlé S.A
- Olam International
- Sucden - Nedcoffee B.V.
- Yayasan Inisiatif Dagang Hijau
- Wildlife Conservation Society