What if protecting forests could actually help a country’s economy grow instead of slowing it down? For decades, many people believed that countries had to choose between economic development and forest conservation.
You either cut down trees to build cities and make money, or you protected forests and stayed poor. But Indonesia and Norway have been working together to prove this belief wrong.
Is this the utopic future we all dreamed of?
Development and Forest Protection
For many years, countries faced a difficult choice. They could protect their forests and natural resources, but this often meant their economies stayed weak and their people remained poor. Or they could cut down forests to create farmland, build cities, and develop industries, but this destroyed ecosystems and contributed to climate change.
Indonesia’s experience shows there is a third way. The country has demonstrated that with proper policies and international support, forests can be protected while the economy continues growing and people’s lives continue improving.
Andreas Eriksen praised Indonesia’s achievement in balancing these competing needs. He said that the global community can learn from Indonesia, which has demonstrated how forest protection can coexist with economic growth through effective forestry programs.
Indonesia has shown the world that forestry policies can align with new opportunities in the global economy and create new jobs for the people. This is not just theoretical.
Indonesia has created real jobs in forest management, ecotourism, sustainable harvesting, and other sectors that depend on healthy forests. People who once made money by cutting down trees now make money by protecting them.
The key insight here is that forests are not obstacles to development but assets that can drive sustainable economic growth. Forests provide ecosystem services that support agriculture, regulate water supplies, prevent soil erosion, and protect communities from natural disasters like floods and landslides.
When forests are protected properly, they continue providing these services while also creating economic opportunities through sustainable industries. Indonesia’s success in achieving this balance offers a model for other developing countries facing similar challenges between conservation and growth.
The Fourth Phase
The partnership between Indonesia and Norway reached another milestone in December 2024 when both governments launched the fourth phase of result-based contribution funding cooperation.
Norway provided US$60 million to Indonesia based on emission reductions achieved in 2019 and 2020. This funding represents a concrete reward for Indonesia’s success in reducing deforestation during those years. The money was not given as charity or aid but as payment for verified results in forest protection.
Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq stated that Indonesia had earlier submitted the results of measurement, reporting, and verification documents for the fourth phase in 2023. This MRV process is crucial because it provides transparent, scientific evidence of emission reductions.
The process involves satellite monitoring of forest cover, ground verification, and detailed carbon accounting to calculate exactly how much deforestation has been reduced. This marks one of the success stories of implementing Article 5 of the Paris Agreement, which deals with reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.
By December 2024, Norway had contributed a total of US$216 million to Indonesia for emission reductions from tackling deforestation. This substantial sum reflects the scale of Indonesia’s achievement in forest protection over multiple years.
The money has been invested in various programs supporting forest conservation, sustainable land use, and community development in forested areas.
The result-based nature of the funding creates strong incentives for continued forest protection because Indonesia only receives payment when it can prove forests have been protected and emissions have been reduced.
Minister Nurofiq explained that Indonesia, through the Enhanced NDC climate document, has targeted emission reductions by 2030 reaching 31.89 percent through its own efforts and 43.2 percent with international support.
Indonesia FOLU
Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni affirmed that the collaboration with Norway was a form of collective effort to address climate change at the grassroots level through the implementation of Indonesia FOLU Net Sink 2030.
FOLU stands for Forestry and Other Land Use, which is one of the major sectors producing greenhouse gas emissions in Indonesia. The FOLU Net Sink 2030 goal is ambitious and transformative.
It aims to ensure a higher absorption rate than emissions generated for the forestry and land use sectors by 2030.
What does this mean in practical terms? Currently, Indonesia’s forestry and land use sector produces net emissions, meaning more greenhouse gases are released than absorbed. This happens through deforestation, forest fires, peatland drainage, and land conversion for agriculture.
The Net Sink goal means flipping this equation entirely. By 2030, Indonesia aims to have its forests and land absorbing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than they release. This would transform the forestry sector from a source of emissions into a carbon sink that helps fight climate change.
Achieving this goal requires multiple strategies working together. Indonesia must continue reducing deforestation rates, restore degraded forests, protect peatlands that store massive amounts of carbon, prevent forest fires, and improve land management practices in agriculture.
The partnership with Norway provides crucial financial and technical support for these efforts. Indonesian forests are some of the most biodiverse and carbon-rich in the world, particularly the tropical rainforests in Sumatra, Kalimantan, and Papua.
Protecting these forests benefits not just Indonesia but the entire planet by helping stabilize the global climate.
A Model?
Norwegian Ambassador to Indonesia Rut Kruger Giverin attended the December 2024 launch of the fourth funding phase alongside President Prabowo Subianto’s Special Envoy for Energy and the Environment, Hashim Djojohadikusumo.
The presence of high-level officials from both countries demonstrated the political commitment behind the partnership. Andreas Eriksen highlighted the decades-long cooperation between Indonesia and Norway in the forestry sector during the February 2025 meeting. He expressed pride in continuing the partnership with Indonesia’s Forestry Ministry.
Eriksen emphasized that the partnership is built not only on shared high ambitions but also on mutual respect and commitment. This mutual respect is crucial for the partnership’s success. Norway does not dictate policies to Indonesia or treat the relationship as donor to recipient. Instead, both countries work as partners with complementary roles.
Indonesia provides the forests and implements conservation policies. Norway provides financial support based on verified results. Both countries benefit from the arrangement. Indonesia receives funding for forest protection that supports economic development and climate goals.
Norway achieves its international climate commitments by supporting emission reductions in a country with extensive tropical forests.
The Indonesia-Norway partnership offers important lessons for international climate cooperation. It shows that result-based payments can effectively incentivize forest protection. It demonstrates that developing countries can protect forests while continuing economic growth.
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