Jakarta, Nov. 27 -- Indonesian Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said on Thursday the country's social forestry program has become a central strategy to advance ecological and economic justice, boost rural welfare and safeguard forests.

"For us, social forestry is a shared movement to ensure fair access to forest management, open real economic opportunities, and maintain forest sustainability across generations," Antoni said in a statement from Jakarta.

The program allows communities living near forests to apply for management rights and cultivate land using environmentally sustainable methods.

Antoni said the initiative has granted access to more than one million households, supported the growth of 15,852 Social Forestry Business Gro...