Working Together to Provide a Safe Home for Borneo’s Orangutans

APRIL Group’s conservation work extends well beyond its home base of Riau Province on Sumatra. In East Kalimantan, on the neighbouring island of Borneo, the company supports  the management of PT Restorasi Habitat Orangutan Indonesia (PT RHOI), a conservation license holder overseeing 86,593 hectares of tropical  rainforest under a long-term Indonesian government management license. PT RHOI’s primary mission to restore degraded forests and lands, preserving critical habitats for endangered species such as the Borneo orangutans.

“The partnership works because we both want to be part of the solution,” says Jamartin Sihite, Director of PT RHOI and CEO of the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOSF).

Within the forest, which straddles the East Kutai and Kutai Kertanegara regencies in East Kalimantan, the team has recorded a range of species including sun bear, maroon leaf monkey and the Bornean crested fireback. It is also an ideal conservation habitat for orang-utans. Since 2012, PT RHOI and the Natural Resource Conservation Agency (BBKSDA) of East Kalimantan have released 135 of the orange great apes into the area. In that time, eleven orangutan infant have been born in the wild.

APRIL has supported PT RHOI since 2023, following the signing of a partnership agreement that includes funding and shared conservation management expertise. Even prior to the formal agreement, APRIL and PT RHOI had been collaborating through information exchange and staff exchanges between the two sites. As PT RHOI’s restoration work aligns closely with the approach of APRIL’s flagship conservation program, Restorasi Ekosistem Riau, the partnership offers ample opportunity to share knowledge and expertise.

There are differences though, said Nyoman Iswarayoga, Head of Strategic Initiatives and ESG, because PT RHOI is not on peatland as is the case with RER. But there are plenty of operational similarities in the way they are run. “It is not entirely the mirror of what we are doing in RER, but we are applying similar principles and approaches to deliver and in compliance to the work plan,” said Iswarayoga.

Since 2020, APRIL has committed to allocating US$1 to conservation for every tonne of plantation wood delivered to its mill in Indonesia, amounting to more than US$60 million over the past five years. This commitment has enabled APRIL to invest in various conservation initiatives, including its partnership with PT RHOI.

Building Capacity and Strengthening Operations

Apart from providing funding, APRIL has assisted PT RHOI by sharing technical and operational support across multiple areas. This includes on-the-ground guidance from APRIL’s fire prevention and suppression team, who advised PT RHOI’s team on site. The partnership has further enabled PT RHOI to conduct trainings in other areas such as drone-based monitoring for fire detection and illegal activity, occupational safety standards, and wildlife surveillance through camera traps. With advice and assistance from APRIL, PT RHOI staff also managed to secure certifications in forest planning, mapping, forest development, and carbon ecosystem services.

Under the partnership, PT RHOI has marked around 30 km of its boundary lines to avoid accidental incursions by neighbours with another 15 km is still in progress. APRIL also lends support for essential back-office functions such as finance, administration and human resources.

“Because PT RHOI operates in a different landscape, it’s also a learning opportunity for us to understand the way they are doing conservation,” Iswarayoga said. “The partnership also serves APRIL’s broader mission to promote high-quality conservation outside of the company’s concessions.”

Sihite recalled meeting with APRIL’s leadership team to understand why APRIL had made conservation and restoration such prominent pillars among its sustainability commitments. The discussion, he said, convinced him that conservation is part of APRIL’s business model.

“For APRIL, conservation is an investment that is needed for the long-term survival of the business,” said Sihite. “That is important. If you treat conservation as a cost, one day you will cut it. If you treat it as an investment, you will keep it.”

By investing in partnerships like PT RHOI, APRIL turns its conservation commitments into tangible impact, restoring ecosystem and strengthening biodiversity protection.

Read more of the orangutan release by BOSF here: https://www.orangutan.or.id/celebrating-earth-day-with-the-release-of-six-orangutans-in-kehje-sewen-forest

Read more about APRIL’s commitment to conservation efforts and partnerships here: Staying the Course: APRIL Group publishes 2024 Sustainability Report – APRIL Dialog

*Images courtesy of PT RHOI and BOSF.