Mother, January 3, 2026. Social forestry is often celebrated when legal management rights are issued. But after that, the most fundamental questions arise: what can be managed, with what capital, and to what extent can the group survive? This is where the post-legalization period becomes a real test of social forestry policy.
The Mulyatani 1 Forest Farmers Group (KTH) in Ibun Village is currently in this phase. Through its agroforestry system, this group has effectively implemented the basic principles of Social Forestry: maintaining and enhancing land cover, working collectively, and linking forests to community livelihoods. The main challenge faced is not willingness or knowledge, but rather limited access to business capital appropriate to the characteristics of forest communities.
Available formal financing schemes do not fully address the needs of agroforestry businesses, which are long-term, carry ecological risks, and are based on collective labor. This situation forces many social forestry groups to survive with limited self-funded capital, hindering optimal development of production capacity and market opportunities.
Responding to this situation, the Indonesian Social Forestry Companions Association (AP2SI) is encouraging the implementation of Business Capital Strengthening activities through Agroforestry Nurseries and Seedlings for KTH Mulyatani.
This activity is not intended as immediate assistance, but rather as initial operational capital that can be managed directly by the group. Support is provided through the provision of nursery facilities, seedling production inputs, and assistance with simple and practical business management.
The established nursery serves not only as a seedling supply unit but also as a collective economic learning space for capital management, transparency, and shared responsibility. The agroforestry seedlings produced are used directly by group members to strengthen agroforestry practices in the Social Forestry management area.
Through this activity, AP2SI encourages the strengthening of forest-based community enterprises as the foundation for the sustainability of Social Forestry, with interventions that are realistic, contextual, and rooted at the grassroots level.
