The conservation area management plan is applied by the management unit and related parties in order to establish programmes and action plans aimed at realizing the management objectives of the nature reserve and its natural conservation areas. In this regard, the management plan is a tool that can be used by managers in order to manage the area and its existing natural resources and biodiversity, both now and as we head into the future. Forest management plans are prepared based on the results of forest management and forestry plans and take into account the aspirations, participation and cultural values of the community as well as the prevailing environmental conditions.

The Wasur National Park Long-Term Management Plan (RPJP) for the 2014-2023 period will remain valid for another two years, however, the plan is no longer relevant for use as a management reference due to the fact that several changes have now been implemented, which include changes to the zoning of the Wasur National Park (Wasur NP), as well as to the area of the national park. As a result, the Evaluation Technical Team has recommended that comprehensive changes be made to the Wasur National Park Long-Term Management Plan, which will subsequently be incorporated into the new management plan for the 2022-2031 period. The objectives of the 2014-2023 management plan include the maintenance of the original ecosystem of wetlands as a habitat for important flora and fauna, increasing the incomes of communities living in and around the area, collaborative management and the development of natural tourism, nature laboratories and research.

As one of the steps involved in the preparation of a long-term management plan, the Wasur NP conducted a public consultation in relation to the draft management plan document on 6 December 2021 in Merauke Regency, Papua Province. This public consultation was organized in order to solicit input from various interested parties in relation to the 2022-2031 management plan.

In her opening remarks, the Director of Forestry and Water Resources Conservation for Bappenas, Dr Nur Hygiawati Rahayu, invited all parties to jointly engage in discussions of an area that not only belongs to Papua but the whole world as a global conservation zone.

In his closing remarks, the Head of the Papua Natural Resources Conservation Agency, Edward Sembiring, reminded all participants that the management of the Wasur National Park cannot be undertaken by the Wasur National Park alone due to the fact that the area comprises over 400,000 hectares, which is not supported by a sufficient number of employees. This means that the manager must implement management activities at the site level through the active involvement of traditional communities that have customary rights over the area through various activities, including the establishment of a community group that addresses the issue of fire prevention (Masyarakat Peduli Api - MPA) and a community group that supports the local forest rangers (Masyarakat Mitra Polhut).

Moreover, various cooperation agreements and partnership schemes such as Conservation Agreements and Conservation Partnerships have also been initiated. Through this hand-in-hand relationship between the management of the Wasur NP and its surrounding local communities, it is hoped that over the course of the next decade, these parties will become more capable and stronger, working together in order to maintain and conserve the biodiversity of this national park and to achieve all of the objectives that have been agreed upon under the framework of the 2022-2031 Wasur management plan.

For more information, please contact:
Theodora F. Resubun, Advisor for Sustainable Forest Management and Coordinator for Papua Province
Mohammad Sidiq, Strategic Area Manager for Sustainable Forest Management and Coordinator for Papua and West Papua Provinces