Representative of the Ministry of Forestry of Indonesia, Agus Justianto, underscored the crucial role of smallholder tree farmers in supporting sustainable wood supply and improving rural livelihoods during the 31st Session of the Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission (APFC31) and the 5th Asia-Pacific Forestry Week (APFW2025) held at Shangri-La Hotel, Chiang Mai, Thailand, from 4 to 7 November 2025.
Speaking at the session titled “Smallholder Tree Farming in Asia-Pacific: Challenges and Opportunities Ahead,” organized by the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Agus Justianto, Senior Policy Analyst at the Ministry of Forestry, explained that Indonesia continues to strengthen community-based forest management through its social forestry and community forestry programs.
“Smallholder tree farmers in Indonesia produce around 80 percent of the teak used by small and medium-scale furniture industries, showing that communities are key actors in the national timber supply chain,” Agus said.
He noted that the government aims to expand social forestry areas to 12.7 million hectares as part of its sustainable forest management strategy. As of October 2025, 8.32 million hectares have been allocated under the program, directly benefiting approximately 1.42 million households and generating an estimated 4.58 trillion rupiah in total economic transactions.
Agus also emphasized that community-managed forests play an important role in achieving Indonesia’s FOLU Net Sink 2030 target, contributing to carbon sequestration and land restoration. “Forests managed by communities under secure tenure tend to have lower deforestation rates and higher regeneration levels,” he added.
The session, featuring panelists from several countries including Indonesia, Fiji, Nepal, and India, explored shared challenges and opportunities to enhance smallholders’ contributions to sustainable wood production across the Asia-Pacific region. The event also saw the launch of a joint publication by FAO, CIFOR-ICRAF, and ITTO, titled “Agroforestry for Wood Production – Insights from Multifunctional Smallholder Tree Farming Systems in Asia and the Pacific.”
The Asia-Pacific Forestry Week (APFW) forms part of the broader Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission (APFC31) — a regional statutory body operating under the auspices of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The Commission serves as a consultative forum for member countries in the Asia-Pacific region to discuss policy directions and regional forestry issues. Recommendations from APFC and other regional forestry commissions in Africa, Europe, and the Americas are submitted to the global Committee on Forestry (COFO), FAO’s highest-level forestry forum.
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