Lead Partner Organisation: Indonesian Government, Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (MMAF) (Research Center for Coastal and Marine Resources, Research Agency for Marine and Fisheries)
Blue Forest ecosystem focus: Mangrove and Seagrass
Total area covered: 100,000 ha (for both improved understanding and improved ecosystem management)

The focus of the GEF Blue Forests Project small-scale intervention titled ‘Indonesia Blue Forest Project’ is to advance the Blue Forests concept at the national scale in the Republic of Indonesia. This will be accomplished through the project’s goals of improving understanding of the Blue Forests concept, creating a unified voice for the advancement of a Blue Forests policy in Indonesia, and expanding the baseline of understanding for carbon accounting and the valuation of ecosystem services for mangrove and seagrass habitats at two project sites.

Targeted research by the government of Indonesia on the carbon stocks and the valuation of services provided by Blue Forest ecosystems, focused on the mangrove ecosystems in Tomini Bay located in the north of Sulawesi, and the Derawan Islands located on the eastern coast of the island of Borneo. As will be the case in the research of mangrove ecosystems, research in seagrass ecosystems will also focus on the assessment of carbon stocks, carbon sequestration and ecosystem services.

Improving the understanding, management and policy related to the Blue Forests concept in Indonesia will be facilitated through a ‘National Blue Carbon Center’, which will provide a central forum for all Indonesian blue forest stakeholders.

GEF Blue Forest funds will support and enhance the existing national goals regarding mangrove and seagrass conservation, the National REDD Strategy, and blue forests related policy assessment. GEF funds will allow this small-scale intervention to be developed into an internationally scalable experience comparable with the intervention sites of the Blue Forests Project and external international initiatives.