"Heart of Borneo" countries agree to five points to conserve forests

Three countries that took part in the second "Heart of Borneo" (HoB) meeting -- Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam -- have agreed to implement five things to protect forest areas, conservation and production forests for the sake of future generations, a senior Agriculture Ministry official said.

Speaking at a press conference here on Friday, the ministry`s director of forest areas and nature conservation (PHKA), Nur Hidayat, said the three countries had committed themselves to implementing five points agreed on during the four-day Heart of Borneo meeting in Pontianak from April 1 to 4.

The five points had to do with space layout, utilization of protected and conserved forests in accordance with their types or qualifications, processing of forest products based on conservation principles as not all forests are included in the HoB, conducting activities designed to make use of the existing potentials by avoiding tree-cutting, making efforts to save and maintain forests in line with their function or increase the local communities` role in conserving forests, Nur Hidayat said.