TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto echoed the government’s commitment to protecting the environment in accordance with the three implementing regulations of the Law on Job Creation on environment and forestry.

In a written statement on Saturday, Airlangga Hartato attributed the economic improvement of forest communities to the Social Forestry Program.

The Job Creation Law is expected to ensure the sustainability of the Social Forestry Program launched since 2007 and has offered benefits to communities living around state and customary forests.

"If it is managed in a cluster, we will support it with the People's Business Credit (KUR) and later accompanying funds. The (program's) products will have high competitiveness, and hopefully, they would be exported," he remarked.

Currently, the social forestry program has provided new jobs for some 800 to 900 thousand households.

Hartato opined that investment in forests in the Job Creation Law is an investment that applies environmental preservation principles.

With the inclusion of social forestry in the Job Creation Law, the government has opened up investment for the wider community, albeit within the corridor of environmental preservation.

In addition, the Job Creation Law regulates economic empowerment of the community based on social forestry to boost the national economy.

The government is optimistic of an improvement in the welfare of the community around the forest area, by striking a balance between the environment and the existing socio-cultural dynamics.

The minister additionally pointed to the social impacts since a legal basis would offer people a sense of greater safety in forest land management.

The Job Creation Law is also expected to reduce the imbalance in forest tenure between the wider community and corporations.

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ANTARA