Harvesting palm oil in Kuta Makmur district of Aceh province, Indonesia. (Photo: AFP/VNA) More than 475 billion IDR in fines have been issued so far, an official from the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Investment said.
Indonesia noted last month that it had identified some 200,000 hectares of oil palm plantations in areas designated as forests, and those plantations are set to be returned to the state to be converted back into forests.
Officials said the measures were necessary as some companies have already been tending the land for years.
In 2020, Indonesia, the world’s biggest palm oil producer and exporter, issued rules to sort out the legality of plantations operating in areas that are supposed to be forests with a view to fixing governance in the sector./.
VNA
