Indonesia notched up the remarkable feat of achieving double-digit growth from its forestry exports in the first quarter of this year despite the ongoing pandemic weighing heavily on global markets. Source: ForestHints
Indonesian Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya said that the outstanding growth figure of 14% recorded during this first quarter period proves the agility of the country’s forestry production export-based industry in the face of persistent barriers caused by the pandemic.
The performance of Indonesia’s forestry exports has been improving steadily from a position of minus growth for several months in the beginning of the pandemic, rebounding to single-digit positive growth at the beginning of the year, and moving into double-digit growth over the first quarter of this year.
“This means that from upstream to downstream, our forestry business sector is persevering in its efforts to overcome the barriers brought about by the global pandemic, to the extent that the performance of forestry exports has leapt into double-digit growth – facilitated too, of course, by the government’s relaxation package including both tax and non-tax policies,” she said.
Minister Nurbaya emphasized that, in addition to the target of getting the forestry business sector to quickly phase-out of the survival period and once again contribute at a real level during the global pandemic, these efforts are aimed at ensuring that as few lay-offs as possible occur in this sector, as ordered by President Joko Widodo.
“Naturally, we are strongly focused on leaving behind minus GDP growth as soon as possible. 79% of our national program priorities are linked to forestry and environment, including the push to attain positive GDP growth quickly this year,” she said.
Minister Nurbaya also pointed out that of Indonesia’s nine forestry export products, all achieved positive growth in the first quarter of 2021, six at the double-digit level and three by single digits.
Minister Nurbaya explained that of Indonesia’s seven international forestry export market destinations, five are already at a positive growth level, and efforts are being intensified to ensure positive growth is achieved in the other two, so as to maintain steady double-digit growth for the country’s forestry exports in the long term.
“Our exports to the African market are still in minus growth. As for the EU, we are only slightly negative at minus 0.6%, so we expect to shift into positive territory in the coming quarters, while exports to non-EU members retain positive growth,” she said.
The minister added that Indonesia’s forestry exports to the US and China reached similarly impressive levels of double-digit growth in the first quarter of 2021, of 35% and 38% respectively.
“We’re not just talking about the short term and phasing out from the survival level. The government’s economic recovery efforts consist of consistent state-level interventions with all the available resources to ensure long-term economic progress, for both business and the widespread creation of job opportunities at the most sustainable level,” she said.
According to the minister, this includes ensuring long-term double-digit growth in forestry exports.
Besides attaining double-digit growth in forestry exports, Indonesia also managed to reduce deforestation by 75.03%, to the lowest level in the country’s history during 2018/2019 to 2019/2020 according to Minister Nurbaya.
