From 24th - 25th of April 2018, Ms. Sabine Tonscheidt, Director GIZ’s Corporate Communications Unit and GIZ spokesperson, visited GIZ program’s implementation sites in North Kalimantan (Tarakan and Tanjung Selor) and Berau district in East Kalimantan. She was accompanied by representatives of the GIZ-country office, among them Mr. Peter Palesch (GIZ Country Director of Indonesia, Timor Leste and ASEAN), representatives of the Forests and Climate Change Programme - FORCLIME and Mr. Ade Cahyat (Low Emissions Oil Palm Development Project - LEOPALD). The purpose of the visit was to collect deep insights on practical, environment-related activities of GIZ programs in Indonesia and ways of cooperation with relevant stakeholders.

On the first day, the group visited Tarakan to get firsthand information about FORCLIME’s activities related to Geographic Information System- (GIS) training and shrimp-farm mapping in mangrove forest areas as a requirement for introducing sustainable shrimp-farm management approaches within the framework of social forestry schemes. The trip continued to Tanjung Selor. Here, in the capital city of North Kalimantan, Ms. Tonscheidt and delegation were received by the Governor, Dr. Irianto Lambrie. During this meeting questions of further cooperation and common targets were addressed.

Next stage of the trip was Berau district. On the occasion of a common dinner in Tanjung Redep the deputy regent of Berau introduced Ms. Tonscheidt and the delegation to special features of the district, current priorities of the Government and urgent needs of local smallholder farmers.

During the second day of the visit in Berau district several places of interest, among them an oil palm concession, a FORCLIME-FC (financial cooperation) reforestation demonstration-plot as well as an Agarwood distillation unit were viewed. The delegation had lively discussions with local stakeholders on many occasions in order to learn about current challenges and share points of view.

For more information, please contact:
Lutz Hofheinz, Senior Adviser for Forest Management Unit Development
Mohammad Sidiq, Province Coordinator North Kalimantan