Jakarta, July 13 -- The Indonesian government plans to expand the use of forest land in 2026 to support food, energy, and water security, as well as to enhance downstream processing of forest products to boost regional development.

Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni outlined these targets in a statement issued by the ministry on Sunday.

He said the initiatives would contribute to macro-level development goals, including a 15 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from the forestry sector and an improvement in the Village Development Index through forestry-related programs in 600 villages.

"We also aim to increase the forestry sector's contribution to the gross domestic product, reaching Rp65.23 trillion (US$3.9 billion) at const...