Overview

Introduced in 2023, the Sustainable Landscape Initiative in Kutai Timur (SUSTAIN KUTIM) is a collaboration between the public and private sector in East Kalimantan, Indonesia, coordinated by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Proforest and Tanah Air Lestari (TAL), under the remit of the East Kutai District Government’s ongoing sustainability strategy. The initiative aims to strengthen the capacity of the East Kutai District Government, local communities, smallholders, workers, and plantation companies to cooperate in transforming East Kutai to be a sustainable region in agricultural production, with a focus on palm oil and rubber. 

Context

East Kutai (Kutai Timur) regency covers a total area of 3,151,176 hectares, of which two thirds (67,1%) of the land is forest cover, and about one third (32,7%) is classified as Other Land Use Area (APL), of which roughly half are palm oil plantations. East Kutai is home to vast palm oil plantations alongside the most extensive natural forest cover. The area contains significant areas of wetlands, karst, mangroves, coral reefs, and habitats for some critically endangered species.   

Objectives of the landscape programme 

The five key aims of the initiative are: 

1. The development of foundational elements to facilitate the multistakeholder cooperation process 
2. The protection of High Conservation Value (HCV) areas in priority villages
3. Strengthening tenurial and operational legalities of local communities and smallholders 
4. Sustainable production by smallholders and companies in priority sub-districts
5. Improved Public Finance Mechanism (PFM) for Sustainable Landscape Approach via public finance instruments and structures