The Bulungan Forest Management Unit (KPH Bulungan), supported by FORCLIME, organized a farmer field school to introduce mixed- farming (agroforestry) on 21 March 2019 at Long Lasan Village, Peso Sub-district, Bulungan, North Kalimantan. 20 members of a local farmer group, Kelompok Tani Hutan Lasan Belua, joined the training. Due to the field training the farmers gained knowledge and practice on how to produce organic fertilizers for more productive and more environmentally friendly harvests, no chemical fertilizers are used within the production process.

The field school event is facilitated by members of IPAMA, an agroforestry extension workers association, who already conducted a similar field training in Malinau district, North Kalimantan. The event conducted in Bulungan is based on the successful experience of the one undertaken in Malinau. After the field school event, KPH Bulungan will train local farmers in mixed-farming including planting coffee.

Since 2015, local famers have grown paddy, coffee and various fruit plants on a land of 100 hectares, which is located within the KPH Bulungan area. Mr Suriantoh, one of the extension workers from the KPH Bulungan stated that currently, the KPH Bulungan initiates plotting 10 hectares of the land for an agroforestry progamme and planting coffee that will be managed collaboratively with local farmers through a forestry partnership, one of the Social Forestry schemes.

For more information, please contact:
Mohammad Sidiq, Province Coordinator North Kalimantan