Minister: National Peatland and Mangrove Management Agency to be Established Soon

RRI.CO.ID, Bengkalis – Indonesia's Forestry Minister, Raja Juli Antoni, said the National Peatland and Mangrove Management Agency (BPGMN) will soon be established to strengthen the management of peatland and mangrove ecosystems in Indonesia. He has also said the government is currently preparing a draft Presidential Regulation (Perpres) as the legal basis for establishing the agency.

The Ministry of Forestry is leading the preparation of the draft regulation. “The President has made the decision after listening to scientists and considering research-based evidence. It is a research-based policy. He has heard proposals from scientists and academics, supported by sufficient data, that Indonesia needs an agency specifically dedicated to managing peatlands,” Raja Juli said during a visit to Tanjung Leban, Bengkalis, Riau, on Wednesday, September 30, 2026.

He said the Ministry of Forestry will hold a two-day workshop on Thursday and Friday to discuss the mandate and organizational structure of the BPGMN. A number of experts and stakeholders involved in peatland and mangrove management will be invited to participate in the discussions.

“We will hold a two-day workshop on Thursday and Friday to jointly determine the mandate of this new agency and what its organizational structure should look like,” he said.

Raja Juli said the draft Presidential Regulation is expected to be submitted to the President through the Minister of State Secretary soon. He expressed hope that the BPGMN could be established shortly after the regulation is issued.

“We will formulate the draft Presidential Regulation, and I will write to the President. On Friday or Monday, I will submit it to the President through the Minister of State Secretary. Hopefully, the agency will have been established by next week based on the Presidential Regulation,” he said.

According to the Minister, once established, the BPGMN will be invited to study peatland ecosystem restoration practices in Tanjung Leban and replicate them in other regions.

He also expressed appreciation for the roles of local communities, the Indonesian Military (TNI), the National Police (Polri), academics, and regional disaster management agencies (BPBD) in preventing forest and land fires. Tanjung Leban is being promoted as a learning center for peatland restoration and forest and land fire prevention.

Raja Juli said Tanjung Leban has experience in restoring an area that had previously experienced repeated forest fires and peatland degradation. The restoration involved ecosystem recovery, planting endemic vegetation, and water management.