RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Marking Earth Day on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, Indonesia and South Korea advanced their collaboration on forest and land fire prevention with the groundbreaking of the Manggala Agni Dormitory in Ogan Komering Ilir, South Sumatra.

According to a press release issued by the Indonesian Ministry of Forestry on Thursday, April 23, 2026, the facility will support the newly established Forest and Land Fire Management Center, a joint initiative designed to strengthen training, coordination, and operational readiness against escalating fire threats.

The dormitory project is part of a broader cooperation framework built on four pillars: establishing a command and training center, enhancing the capacity of Manggala Agni fire brigades, providing supporting infrastructure, and developing advanced information and communication systems for fire detection.

Director of Forest Fire Control at the Indonesian Ministry of Forestry, Thomas Nifinluri, noted that Indonesia faces heightened risks as the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) predicts an earlier onset of El Nino in the second half of 2026.

Rising global temperatures, he warned, will likely increase the frequency, scale, and difficulty of controlling forest and land fires.

“Fire prevention cannot be managed in isolation. It requires strong, sustained collaboration not only domestically but also across nations. This partnership allows knowledge exchange, shared experience, and technology use to strengthen fire management capacity,” Thomas said.

Through support from the Korea Forest Service, Indonesia aims to build Manggala Agni into a center of excellence for fire control, with benefits extending beyond national borders to ASEAN and the international community.

Counselor at the South Korean Embassy to Indonesia, Ha Kyung Soo, emphasized that the dormitory is integral to enhancing Manggala Agni’s capacity under the bilateral forestry cooperation project Development of Forest and Land Fire Management System in South Sumatra.

“This facility is expected to improve the effectiveness of training, coordination, and integrated fire management operations in a sustainable way,” Ha explained.

The groundbreaking was attended by representatives from the Korean Embassy, Indonesia’s Directorate of Forest Fire Control, regional fire control offices, Manggala Agni Daops XVII OKI, local disaster management agencies, and community leaders.

The Forest and Land Fire Management Center has already hosted international training sessions, including a peatland fire management program organized by the Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFoCo) from April 20–24, with participants from six countries: Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Cambodia, Timor Leste, the Philippines, and Indonesia. ***