Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesia has launched a nationwide conservation campaign to protect the critically endangered Sumatran and Bornean elephants as their habitats come under increasing pressure from infrastructure development and economic expansion.
Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said on July 11 that President Prabowo Subianto had ordered stronger protection of elephant populations and their habitats, making conservation a national priority.
The directive calls for balancing environmental protection with economic development. Infrastructure and commercial projects in elephant habitats must be coordinated across ministries to minimise their environmental impact.
The government also plans to establish ecological corridors and protected areas along elephant migration routes to maintain connectivity between populations and support their movement, feeding and breeding.
The campaign involves nine ministries and agencies, the national police, and local authorities in Sumatra and North Kalimantan, where the two elephant species are found.
Conservation groups classify the Sumatran elephant as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, while Bornean elephant populations have declined sharply because of deforestation, habitat fragmentation and increasing human-wildlife conflict./.
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