Jakarta – Deputy II of the Executive Office of the President (KSP), Abetnego Tarigan responds to the importance of the issue of the Europe Union Deforestation Rules (EUDR). He said that the EUDR is a challenge for various commodities with deforestation footprint, and at the same time an opportunity for sustainable products to become more competitive. The implementation of EUDR itself has an impact on the export of plantation commodities in Indonesia, including palm oil as a strategic commodity.
“The existence of the EUDR issue should not trap us. Our unpreparedness in responding to EUDR must be anticipated, especially regarding legality and sustainability issues,” said Abetnego.
In anticipation to the implementation of the EUDR, Abetnego continued, the Government of Indonesia has taken various steps to realize sustainable palm oil commodities, including through the National Action Plan for Sustainable Palm Oil Plantation (RAN-KSB), improving Indonesia Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) certification, resolving palm oil plantation in forest areas, and increasing farmer productivity, including through replanting of smallholder palm oil. However, in its implementation, there are still several things that need to be synergized. “Whether there is or is not EUDR, we continue to improve the implementation of our domestic law,” Abetnego added.
On that occasion, Abetnego also assessed the obligation to identify keenness of stakeholders in Indonesia to meet the aspect of the EUDR requirements, challenges, and support needed. This identification, he said, can also be used as a basis to improving palm oil control for the better.
“From the perspective of policy and system development, we have made a lot of progress in the last 5 to 10 years, but the quality of these policies is still questionable,” said Abetnego.
Another issue of concern, said Abetnego, is the impact of EUDR on palm oil farmers. The main provisions of the EUDR that have potential to be very detrimental and problematic for smallholder farmers, including the implementation of geolocation and the country benchmarking systems that will divide into 3 categories, namely high risk, standard, and low risk.
From the government side, Abetnego explained that hopefully the implementation of the EUDR will adopt existing local best practices, including the Indonesian Timber Legality Assurance System (SLVK) for all wood products and Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) for palm oil commodities.
“In general, the position of the Government, Non-Governmental Organization and the farmers are the same, that if not mitigated and prepared well, the implementation of the EUDR can be a barrier to trade and harm small farmers,” Abetnego conveyed.
Abetnego pointed to the importance of potential identification from each party, principally in legality and sustainability. This discussion will later become the potential synergy and collaboration between the Ministries, Regional Governments and Non-Government Stakeholders to face EUDR. “We will encourage the specific issues in strengthening the institutions and the governance of the palm oil sector,” he concluded.
As noted, the EUDR, which has been in effect since May 2023, has put Indonesian palm oil products at risk of not being able to enter the European Union market. Under EUDR, palm oil, meat, coffee, wood, cocoa, rubber, soybean, and their derivatives entering the European Union must meet certain requirements through due diligence. The EU market is the fourth largest export market for Indonesian palm oil and absorbs 8.8% of total palm oil exports. Therefore, Indonesia needs to build readiness to ensure that Indonesian palm oil products remain successful in the EU market.
