National Goal: Protecting a Million Square Kilometers of Water

Indonesia embarks on a colossal project to protect 10% of its waters by 2030 and then triple the marine protected area coverage by 2045, a move that is part of the country’s environmental conservation goal.

“The ocean must be protected,” claims fisheries minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono. “Conservation [areas] will not only serve as fish spawning grounds, but will also absorb carbon [emissions].”

At the moment, Indonesia has 284,000 km² of protected marine area, roughly the size of Germany. By 2030, the coverage will reach 325,000 km² or 10% of its total territorial waters. And by 2045, the government intends to triple the protected marine area, bringing it to a total of 975,000 km². Through the protection and sustainable management of its waters, Indonesia wishes to improve the economic benefits of such conservation and build on cultural development and community knowledge of the different areas so they have meaningful impacts. No other country has more marine life diversity than this Southeast Asia nation: in the eastern region of Indonesia, for example, there is the Pacific Coral Triangle, an area rich in corals and reef fish.