RRI.CO.ID, Shenzhen - Indonesia and South Korea strengthened their commitment to cooperation in the forestry sector thru a bilateral meeting held on the sidelines of the APEC Forestry Ministers' Meeting (FTMM) in Shenzhen, China, on Monday, July 27, 2026.

The meeting brought together the Director General of Sustainable Forest Management (PHL) of the Ministry of Forestry, Laksmi Wijayanti, with the Commissioner of the Korea Forest Service, Park Eun-sik. Both parties discussed strengthening collaboration in sustainable forest management, empowering communities around the forest, and enhancing capacity to face the impacts of climate change.

The Director General of Sustainable Forest Management (PHL) of the Ministry of Forestry, Laksmi Wijayanti, stated that Indonesia and South Korea share the same vision in preserving forest sustainability while also improving the welfare of communities living in and around forest areas. According to her, technical cooperation is an important step to support sustainable forest management.

"We have the same goal, which is to preserve the forest as an ecosystem while ensuring that the communities living in and around the forest area benefit and prosper. Therefore, technical cooperation between Indonesia and South Korea is becoming increasingly important," Laksmi said.

Meanwhile, the Commissioner of the Korea Forest Service, Park Eun-sik, emphasized that Indonesia is a strategic partner of South Korea in the forestry sector. He revealed that Indonesia is the only country where the Korea Forest Service has established a Forest Service Center abroad, reflecting the close cooperation between the two countries.

Park also shared South Korea's experience in dealing with the impacts of climate change. Last year, his country experienced the largest forest fire in history, burning hundreds of thousands of hectares of forest and causing dozens of casualties. After that, South Korea also faced a major landslide disaster during the rainy season.

According to him, the experience shows that forest management should not only focus on environmental protection but also be able to sustain community livelihoods and support the local economy. "Indonesia and South Korea have many similarities in their vision for forest management and can share experiences to strengthen the resilience of the forestry sector," he conveyed.

This bilateral meeting is expected to further strengthen the partnership between Indonesia and South Korea in sustainable forest management, forest fire prevention, climate change adaptation, and community empowerment. Laksmi also emphasized that the success of maintaining forest conservation depends on community involvement thru schemes that can enhance welfare while supporting conservation efforts.