Fauna & Flora InternationalJuly 1999
Sumatran Elephant ProgramDraftMedium Sized Project Brief
Project Summary
Project Identifiers- Project name:
- GEF Implementing Agency:
3. Country or countries in which the project is being implemented: Indonesia / 4. Country eligibility:
Ratified CBD 23.8.94
- GEF focal area(s):
Operational Program 3: Forest Ecosystems
7. Project linkage to national priorities, action plans, and programs:
Indonesian biodiversity strategy and action plan. Project also falls under Asian Elephant Action Plan (Santiapillai and Jackson 1990) and the Asian Elephant Population and Habitat Viability Analysis report and recommendations (Tilson et al 1994).
8. GEF national operational focal point and date of country endorsement:
The Indonesian government GEF focal point (Dr Effendy A. Sumardja MSc) initially endorsed the project concept on 11 November 1998.
Project Objectives and Activities
9. Project rationale and objectives:
The project’s objectives towards which CELA will work over its 3 year life-span are:
a)To conserve biologically rich forest ecosystems in Northern Aceh: focussing on the lowland forests that are important wildlife corridors, especially for elephants
b) To maintain biological corridors between the well-protected Gunung Leuser ecosystem and the Northern Aceh forests.
The focus of activities will be on conserving the globally important forests and biodiversity of Aceh outside the current protected areas system. This will be achieved by using elephants as a culturally appropriate flagship species for these forests. In doing so the understanding of, and support and capacity for the conservation of Northern Aceh’s remaining forest will be increased. The result of these activities will be that the current loss and fragmentation of forest will be reduced and sustainable use of Aceh’s natural resources actively encouraged. / Project Indicators
- Percentage of identified critical areas of forest conserved throughout the project period.
- Variation in elephant numbers during the project taken at established monitoring sites.
- Rate of forest clearance and fragmentation in identified critical areas from aerial photos /satellite imagery /ground-truthing.
10. Project outcomes:
Thus, the outcomes of CELA that GEF is requested to assist with are:
- Critical forest areas (containing high levels of biodiversity & populations of key species, or acting as corridors/landscape linkages) officially recognized and under more effective protection.
- The CELA team and project partners and collaborators, from local communities to policy makers, have the capacity to implement and sustain project objectives.
- An improved policy framework for forest conservation, achieved through the elephant as a flagship species in Aceh.
- Strong stakeholder support for and participation in the project, its aims and activities gained through an awareness and education program.
- Ongoing evaluation and dissemination of the results and effectiveness of the proposed activities and interventions.
1. – Number of publications disseminated to key stakeholders (maps and reports detailing critical areas with locations & reasoning).
- Number of selected critical areas listed in government agency publications/incorporated into the national BSAP implementation process as in need of more effective protection measures.
- Increased amount of local government/donor resource allocation to habitat protection from present level.
- Project implemented and sustained effectively and efficiently:
- Number of people attending events per training/ development day.
- Number of communities in focal areas using or planning alternative land-use.
- Number of local NGOs initiating their own campaigns and projects.
- Number of project subcontracts carried out successfully
3. - Number and area of land where land-use allocation changes have been made to encompass conservation needs.
- Number of regulations and technical procedures strengthened.
4. - Number of collaborative projects implemented.
- Number of local communities involved in the project.
- Number of press and media features related to the projector issues raised by it.
- Number of visitors to project centers.
- Number of policy/decision makers addressing conservation issues.
- Increased level of awareness above the baseline in questionnaire respondents as to the projects aims and objectives.
5. - Completed auditing and internal project evaluation procedures.
- Project progresses evaluated against project indicators.
- Bi-annual publication of reports from the bursary scheme recipients
- Annual publication of critical area status reports.
11. Project activities to achieve outcomes (including cost in US$ or local currency of each activity):
1.Increased knowledge and protection of the biodiversity of forest ecosystems of northern Aceh. Activities 1.1 – 1.5: Targeted, applied, biological and threat assessments integrated with improved habitat protection. Total $276,598 ($192,818 requested from GEF)
2.Enhanced capacity among project implementers and partners to achieve and sustain project objectives. Activities 2.1 – 2.7: Capacity building activities Total $208,548 ($157,768 requested from GEF)
3.An enhanced policy and practical framework for forest conservation in Aceh. Activities 3.1-3.3: Promoting protection of key areas. Total $179,048($128,268 requested from GEF)
4.Strong stakeholder support for, and participation in, the project, its aims and activities gained through an awareness and education program. Activities 4.1 – 4.5: Public awareness and education activities. Total $239,198($163,418 requested from GEF)
5.Ongoing evaluation and dissemination of the results and effectiveness of the proposed activities and interventions. Activities 5.1 - 5.3 Monitoring project achievements Total $96,492 ($74,712 requested from GEF)
12. Estimated budget (in US$ or local currency):
PDF: 25,000
GEF: 741,984
Co-financing:...274,900
TOTAL:...... 1,024,884
Information on institution submitting project brief
- Information on project proposer:
14. Information on proposed executing agency (if different from above):
- Date of initial submission of project concept:
Information to be completed by Implementing Agency:
16. Project identification number:
17. Implementing Agency contact person:
18. Project linkage to Implementing Agency program(s):
1
11/03/2018
Conserving wildlife since 1903
Draft
FFI Sumatran Elephant Program
Program Konservasi Habitas Gajah
Conservation of Elephant Landscapes in Aceh
(CELA)
GEF Medium Sized Project Brief for the World Bank
July 1999
Fauna & Flora International, Sumatran Elephant Program
in partnership with
KSDA(Acehnese Nature Conservation Agency)
PKA(Department of Forestry and Estate Crops)
LIPI(Indonesian Institute of Sciences)
1
11/03/2018
Fauna & Flora InternationalJune 1999
Sumatran Elephant ProgramDraftMedium Sized Project Brief
FFI Sumatran Elephant Program
Program Konservasi Habitas Gajah
Conservation of Elephant Landscapes in Aceh.
(CELA)
Project Description
Project Rationale and Objectives
This project aims to conserve globally important biodiversity in the forests of Northern Aceh, outside the current protected areas system by using internationally important Asian elephant populations as flagships and indicators. The project’s importance is that, in partnership with KSDA (the Acehnese Nature Conservation Agency), it aims to overcome some of the barriers to biodiversity conservation in Aceh. It will do this by building stakeholder support for conservation of globally important habitats whilst providing the necessary rationale, consensus and capacity to conserve both forest and flagship species
The forests of Northern Aceh are comparatively unknown in biological terms due to the lack of any systematic surveys. However, the forests are likely to contain a similar biota to that recorded in Gunung Leuser National Park (GLNP), in Southern Aceh. This park has 65% of Sumatra’s 129 mammal species; 80% of its 483 bird species, including all those on the Red List; and thousands of species of trees and plants. Given the extent of Aceh’s remaining forests outside the Protected Area system, and its position within the second most biodiverse country in the world - the global importance of Aceh’s forests cannot be under estimated.
Due to unique historical and cultural associations the elephant is an ideal flagship and indicator species for the conservation of forest and associated biodiversity in Aceh. Elephants are also an umbrella species in that they use a variety of habitats occupied by less charismatic species. Elephant numbers in Aceh, though still viable, are widely thought to be declining as forest habitat disappears and is fragmented; thus declines in elephant numbers are an indicator of wider loss of biodiversity, as is increasing human/ elephant conflict. This species is therefore an ideal focus for monitoring activities that can indicate the condition of the Northern Aceh ecosystem. Also the global significance of the Sumatran elephant is that it is the most important population of Asian elephants outside India and is Asia’s largest population of rainforest elephants. It may even qualify as a distinct subspecies according to recent DNA analyses.
Previous FFI work and project preparation activities have shown that the province represents an excellent opportunity for successful, sustainable conservation due to local commitment at all levels. Importantly this commitment is present in KSDA. FFI's work also revealed that Aceh suffers from the problems of habitat decline apparent throughout Sumatra. Despite containing some of Sumatra’s most extensive forest, only 10% of Aceh is protected as GunungLeuserNational Park and habitat loss continues through legal forest conversion, illegal deforestation and settlement both outside and within ProtectionForest and Protected Areas. Habitat fragmentation is the by-product of this process and now threatens to break the chain of forest running along and flanking the central mountain range of Bukit Barisan from north Aceh to GLNP (see map in Appendix 2). This may lead to the isolation of various globally important and threatened species into smaller more vulnerable populations and subsequently to their eventual extinction in Sumatra. GLNP has had success in addressing these issues in their project area but the extensive tracts of forest outside the park form important habitat for globally threatened species including elephant, tiger and Sumatran rhino. The maintenance of these habitats and their continued linkage to the refuge of GLNP is critical.
The main objectives of this project are therefore
a)To conserve biologically rich forest ecosystems in N. Aceh focusing on the lowland forests that are important wildlife corridors, especially for elephants.
b)To maintain biological corridors between the well-protected Gunung Leuser ecosystem and the northern Aceh forests.
In working towards these objectives the project will concentrate on the issues below in its 3-year life span:
- Identifying critical areas of Aceh’s forest in terms of biodiversity, and the distribution and movements of rainforest elephants, and then working to increase the protective measures that these areas are afforded.
- Building local capacity within project staff and partner organizations, and to achieve the projects aims and objectives;
- Identifying threats to the forest ecosystem and actively encouraging enhanced conservation activities and more beneficial spatial planning;
- Raising awareness of forest ecosystems at all levels of society through the use of elephants as a flagship species
- Monitoring and evaluating the results and effectiveness of project activities.
This will be carried out in partnership with local communities and through a clear government counterpart structure. It will create the opportunity to use longer-term strategies in an area where sufficient forest remains to conserve globally important biodiversity through the application of an elephant landscape approach.
Given the time-scale of CELA and the resources available, the project will work to establish a small number of working models for landscape based biodiversity conservation that can be replicated in other areas. This will demonstrate that elephant landscape initiatives have global importance as adaptable flagship focussed forest conservation models suited to other situations in Sumatra, Asian elephant range states, and potentially African equatorial rainforest.
The area involved is shown on the Elephant Landscapes in Aceh map (Appendix 2). Current predicted forest cover, and particularly that already designated as protection forest, indicates the possibility of maintaining this linked core elephant landscape. For the purpose of this proposal the area involved, north of the Leuser Ecosystem is called Northern Aceh.
Current Situation
This project aims to work with KSDA to promote partnerships between public and private sectors, NGOs, academic institutions and local communities to maintain forest landscapes. Aceh has particular potential for a collaborative project for the following reasons:
- Aceh still contains nationally and globally important areas of forest and populations of elephants and other species
- Aceh has long traditions of coexistence with wildlife and in particular elephants. There is currently an interest in reviving these traditions
- The Government of Indonesia social forestry initiatives may present opportunities for conservation.
- There is a trend, at national and local level, towards rationalizing and simplifying land use planning, with a potential for defining clearer boundaries for forest use that are recognized by more sectors and hence be easier to monitor and manage.
- Committed and knowledgeable staff, from the FFI Sumatran Elephant Program, are already working locally in the field of forest biodiversity conservation.
- This project has been developed as a result of 15 months of consultation and participation, is supported by a wide range of stakeholders, and has gathered a lot of preliminary information on which to base initial activities.
The project has been developed in consultation with staff from the Leuser Management Unit, attached to the Leuser Ecosystem and GunungLeuserNational Park. It will build on the experience and lessons learned from that project, whilst sharing information including satellite data which is available for the southern part of the CELA project area on the Leuser Ecosystems northern borders. Collaborative initiatives are likely to include joint elephant monitoring where herds of the flagship species are moving between the park and the rest of the Bukit Barisan mountain range, as well as joint action on increased public awareness and protection in communities in the same area.
Expected Project Outcomes
The logical framework (Appendix 1) is a result of a wide range of formal and informal consultations (Appendices 6 – 10) undertaken by FFI as part of the project development activities (as indicated under derivation). The framework also provides detailed analysis of the assumptions involved in this course of events. The planned activities can be considered locally appropriate on biological, cultural and economic levels, and are expected to lead to the following outcomes:
- Critical forest areas (containing high levels of biodiversity & populations of key species, or acting as corridors/landscape linkages) officially recognized and under more effective protection.
Project staff will work with partner organizations to carry biodiversity and elephant assessments of Northern Aceh’s forest, and ensure that this information is passed on to all relevant government agencies, whilst promoting improved protection from these agencies through outcomes 2 – 4.
Project preparation activities have provided important basic data about the current extent of forests and the status of key biodiversity components. A rapid assessment program will build on this and gather information on the status and condition of forest resources and key species. Rainforest elephants are good potential flagship species for ecosystem conservation because of their cultural place within Aceh. They also require approximately 20km2 of suitable habitat per individual and therefore make an ideal umbrella species because habitat conserved for them will contain a large variety of other species. Thus, by identifying biologically rich habitat that is also being used by elephants, and analyzing the threats that this forest is under, the arguments for strengthened conservation measures can be made more compelling.
2.Enhanced capacity among project implementers and partners to achieve and sustain project objectives.
A high level of expertise and experience will be developed in such a way as to ensure an effective project legacy and to be applicable to other conservation projects.
The project aims to increase the capacity of project staff and partners to deal with the complex issues of integrating global conservation priorities into a complex social, economic and cultural environment. The broad vision of the project is shared by many stakeholders; project activities will work to support the FFI team, local NGOs and government agencies in achieving sustainable conservation of elephants and elephant habitats.
- An improved policy and practical framework for forest conservation in Aceh.
Information and technical know-how will be provided in order to promote improved integration of conservation objectives into the provincial spatial plan.
Long-term conservation of forest ecosystems depends on the development of a sound policy framework that integrates conservation needs with other land use agendas. While the Government of Indonesia has a range of policies for conservation in place, the project will focus on promoting and lobbying for better and more coordinated spatial planning for forest resource use in Aceh. The goal will be to promote a single provincial spatial plan, which includes full consideration of the needs of forest habitats and key species. This approach also needs to be supported by local people and the private sector as well as government agencies. It will also require field based on the ground support from governmental enforcement agencies.
- Strong stakeholder support for, and participation in, the project, its aims and activities gained through an awareness and education program:
Promotion of forest biodiversity conservation will be achieved using elephants as a flagship species throughout Aceh, in Sumatra and internationally.