Indonesia Summary

The Nature Conservancy did not undertake a formal assessment directly related to private marine conservation options in Indonesia for this toolkit. As such, the information provided below is not comprehensive and does not constitute an endorsement of the approaches. The information is provided solely as examples and concepts of what has taken place in the area and what may be possible.

Private Property

Limited information was gathered regarding private property concepts relating to lands and resources within the ocean and coastal waters of Indonesia. However, seaweed culture takes place on submerged lands and it is understood that the culture plots may be traded like property. Whether seaweed culture property rights are stable and secure enough to adapt for conservation purposes is not clear at this time.

Leasing & Concessions

A marine survey of the northern Raja Ampat islands was undertaken in part by The Nature Conservancy in 2002.1 Among other things, the assessment found that in Raja Ampat the traditional claims of ownership to forest and reef areas create the possibility of developing conservation concessions.

Another study assessed conservation concessions in Indonesia.2 While the study focused on concessions related to forested areas, some of the findings may be applicable to marine areas:

• There were several international NGOs who were, or would be, implementing conservation concessions in Indonesia;
• The Government of Indonesia (GOI), through a Declaration of the Ministry of Forestry, had explicitly expressed support for the conservation concession mechanism, but that more substantial GOI support would be needed;
• Long-term engagement with local communities was an important issue;
• A new monitoring system involving all stakeholder groups would be essential;  and
• Standardization of conservation concessions was unnecessary and undesirable, since the diversity of on-the-ground conditions required that each concession agreement be uniquely tailored to each concession area.

Examples of Private Leasing & Concessions

Various examples exist of leasing between private companies (i.e., for dive resorts3 and pearl farms4) and local communities within the marine environment of Indonesia. These efforts appear typically to be undertaken by for-profit companies in which conservation of the marine environment may not be the primary motivator.  Such agreements, however, whether relying on legal or customary rights, may be adaptable for conservation purposes.

A pearl farm pioneered a type of concession agreement with the village of Selpele on western Waigeo, to whom they pay a concession fee in return for the right to utilize Alyui Bay for pearl farming for a defined time period.5 While the legal basis for development of conservation concessions needs clarification, there is a potential in the concession concept in this area. Possible concession targets include marine ornamental fishes.

In the Komodo National Park, a company reportedly has a concession from the National Park authority to manage tourism. Though the concession does not officially include submerged lands, there are apparently submerged lands affected by the agreement.

In Papua, a private company acted on its understanding that local communities hold very strong traditional rights (known locally as hak Adat) to the land and sea (including some reefs) that are generally respected by the government.6 A land contract for an upland facility and islands was combined with a lease agreement for a marine No-Take-Zone (NTZ). Approximately 200-square kilometers of marine area were leased for the lessee’s exclusive use, with the explicit understanding that there would be no fishing by the lessee and that the lessee would work with the local community to protect the area from illegal fishing. The agreements were entered into for a 25-year period.

The company believed that the local community agreed to the large marine NTZ for several reasons:

• Employment opportunities offered the company.
• The company’s commitment to prevent illegal fishers from fishing in the area. This was a significant point for the community as the NTZ was the furthest area from the village and the villagers had no way to police it. In the past the villagers suffered from numerous bomb fishers and felt helpless to prevent it.
• A large pearl farm in the area employed many of the local people. Thus, a smaller percentage of the historical local population still relied on fishing for their income.
• The NTZ covered only part of the traditional fishing area.
• Traditionally the local people have a system of fishing seasons(sasi). Given this, they were familiar with the idea that if an area is not fished then in the future there will be more fish in that area.
• Conservation awareness programs by nonprofit organizations in the local village raised awareness of the importance of conservation initiatives.
• Local leaders requested that they retain the right to free dive for two types of shellfish. A two-week period was established every other year in which, in certain areas, local community members could free dive for shellfish using traditional methods.

The goodwill of the local people is essential for any conservation agreement with local communities to be successful. As such, continual interaction, community participation and on-going relationship building activities are believed necessary.

Use Rights

Indonesia's new law on the management of coastal areas and small islands (UU27/2007) opens up interesting possibilities for conservation. Among them is Article 16 on Coastal Water Use Rights (Hak Pengusahaan Perairan Pesisir), which is the legal basis for Indonesian groups and individuals to apply for use rights to coastal waters (up to 12 nautical miles from the coastline) for a period up to 20 years. Before this law can actually be implemented, subsidiary regulations will be required. However, one possible implication is that conservation-minded groups will be able to apply for the right to manage and conserve coastal waters. Formal protected areas are excluded from this arrangement (i.e., groups cannot apply for use rights in protected areas that are already established).