Village Forest licences (Hutan Desa) in West Kalimantan: way forward for equity and land security?

Abstract

• Village Forest licences are a good way to secure communal rights against external claims, and a viable strategy to retain control of land, especially for non-indigenous communities and long-term migrants. • A Village Forest licence in its design does not fully cover the complexity of customary adat and traditional rights claimed by longhouses and individuals and does not take into consideration local specificities. • There are many uncertainties about the objectives and implications of the program. • Without free, prior and informed consent, risks of conflict between individual/group interests and the intended role of the program are higher. • The process is entangled in conflicts over contested village communities’ boundaries. • Ownership of the responsibilities for community-based forestry management is not yet present at Forest Management Unit level