Introduction
Indonesia is the world’s largest producer of palm oil, accounting for approximately 60% of global production. As of the 2022, smallholders, who are crucial for the industry, accounted nearly half of the cultivation land, contributing up to 40% to the Indonesian palm oil production. Thisfigure underscores the collaborative dynamic between the private sector and smallholders in the Indonesian palm oil industry.
The Indonesian government has been actively enhancing palm oil governance in recent years. Surat Tanda Daftar Budidaya Elektronik (e-STDB) initiative have been implemented to strengthen smallholder data registration, which will support in improving fresh fruit bunch production quality and harvest, and supportsmallholder business development. This program, plays a critical role in ensuring legal recognition and traceability for smallholder & private sectors, boosting their sustainability, and enhancing their profitability. This approach demonstrates Indonesia’s commitment to merging economic advancement with sustainable and equitable practices, reflecting the integral role of both private and smallholder sectors in the industry’s growth and governance.
There are estimated to be close to three million palm oil smallholders in Indonesia, and with complex supply chains it is challenging for government or any actors to engage with this number of farmers. The government has also set a target to register 2,5 million STDB in the next three years to support smallholders. There are also barriers to engaging that need to be overcome and the need for incentives for farmers to understand the benefits of registering. This means that collaboration is vital to reaching such a large number of farmers. This allows shared benefits and mutual responsibilities from all key stakeholders in the production landscape, including the government agencies, all types of companies, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), smallholders and other related actors, in accordance with their respective expertise and resources.
There are already many ongoing landscape initiatives and company programmes underway to strengthen the smallholders’ position in the supply chain and help companies’ commitment to no deforestation and no exploitation in their palm oil production and sourcing. These needs to be synergised with Indonesia’s government effort to improve the governance of the palm oil industry.
The Palm Oil Task Force under the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime and Investment Affairs in collaboration with the Production & Protection Beyond Concessions (PPBC) Working Group under the Palm Oil Coalition Group (POCG), Indonesia Science Fund (DIPI), World Resource Institute (WRI) Indonesia and Indonesia Ecolabel Agency (LEI) is hosting a workshop titled Smallholder Registration: Collaborating for an Inclusive Palm Sector for Smallholders, involving landscape implementing partners, government agencies, and companies that are currently supporting landscape programs. The workshop will be delivered as a platform to discuss the potential synergy of landscape initiatives in Indonesia with government initiatives, emphasizing the enhancement of smallholder registration processes and traceability. The workshop underscores a collective commitment to sustainable, inclusive growth and the vital contribution of smallholders to the industry’s future.
Objectives
1. Provide a platform for public-private sector dialogue to scale up successful e-STDB initiatives to cover 2,5 million smallholders in Indonesia.
2. Discuss and address challenges for speeding up smallholder registration through e[1]STDB drawing from ongoing and successful landscape and company initiatives and identifying more effective coordination pathways between parallel efforts.
3. Gather inputs for the development of strategic policies required for mainstreaming smallholder registration at the national and sub-national levels & discuss suggested ideas for a monitoring system to oversee the progress and performance of e-STDB acceleration.
4. Develop an effective multi-stakeholder collaboration model at the sub-national level to accelerate the achievement of the 2.5 million smallholder registration target 5. Identify breakthroughs that need to be made to accelerate smallholder registration at the national and sub-national levels
