Photo courtesy of World Economic Forum/Sebastian Derungs

BOGOR, Indonesia (13 September, 2011)_Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono demonstrated his commitment to tackling deforestation and reducing carbon emissions yesterday with the signing of a decree to form a new REDD+ Task Force.

The Task Force, supported by leading ministers and government officials in forestry, will see the establishment of a REDD+ agency, the completion of a national REDD+ strategy and aims to improve coordination between government and local ministries. It will be headed by Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, Chairman of the of Presidential Working Unit on Development Monitoring (UKP4).

“The new Task Force for a REDD+ agency will continue to ensure the coordination  of all activities related to REDD and will report directly to the President,” said Kuntoro, who chaired the previous Task Force on REDD+.

The first Task Force, established in May 2010 following the signing of a Letter of Intent between Indonesia and Norway, expired on June 30 2011. Despite Indonesia’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions and deforestation through REDD+ activities, a lack of coordination between stakeholders in the design and implementation of REDD+ polices has hindered progress.

The establishment of a new task force and REDD+ agency signals the government’s commitment to pushing ahead with the reforms needed to ensure the protection of millions of hectares of rainforest from further deforestation.

As well as the development of a national REDD+ strategy, the decree states that the Task Force will be responsible for the establishment of REDD+ financing mechanisms; the preparation of Measurement, Reporting and Verification (MRV) institutions and the effective implementation of the moratorium.

It also sets out to increase coordination and consultation between international, national and local actors in the REDD+ process.

Read the decree in full here (in Bahasa Indonesia).