PRESS RELEASE
COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA TEAM OF AIS FORUM SUMMIT 2023
No.43/SP/TKM-AISFORUM2023/10/2023
Badung, October 9, 2023 – Coastal areas are the defense line from the sea to the land. The existence of these areas can determine whether the defense stands strong or falters. One of the key factors is the presence of mangroves. These plants that form forests in coastal waters are known to provide many benefits in preventing coastal damage.
Mangroves are a group of plants that grow in alluvial mud in coastal and river estuary areas, and their existence depends on tidal fluctuations. Mangroves or bakau play an important role in maintaining environmental balance. For example, they provide nutrients for marine life, purify water, and maintain saltwater salinity.
The presence of mangroves also helps prevent coastal erosion, reduces the impacts of tidal waves, and protects against the adverse effects of tsunami disasters. All of this is possible if the coast is protected by healthy and well-maintained mangrove forests. In addition to being coastal protectors, mangroves also have other remarkable benefits, including their ability to absorb carbon dioxide (CO2), a major driver of climate change.
Mangroves are huge carbon absorbers and can reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), which the government is currently working to reduce. With the ability to absorb 77% more carbon than terrestrial vegetation like forests, stored under the sea (blue carbon), mangroves hold significant potential. Currently, Indonesia's blue carbon potential reaches 3.4 gigatons, or around 17% of the global blue carbon.
According to the official website of the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KKP), Indonesia’s mangrove ecosystem is the largest in the world, covering 3,364,080 hectares, or approximately 22.6% of the global mangrove forest area. The Indonesian government is expanding mangrove areas and aims to reach 600,000 hectares by 2024 due to the great benefits mangroves provide for coastal areas and as climate change regulators.
This refers to Presidential Regulation Number 120 of 2020 concerning the Peat and Mangrove Restoration Agency. Through this initiative, the targets for mangrove rehabilitation and restoration are expected to be achieved together. Overall, managing mangrove forests requires not only strong policies and commitments from the Indonesian government but also support from various parties to ensure these coastal ecosystems remain preserved and beneficial.
Among the methods to protect mangrove ecosystems is through the adoption of technology. This is exemplified by the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) through Monitoring Mangrove or MonMang, an advanced digital-based application for monitoring mangrove forests. This monitoring application uses artificial intelligence (AI), specifically Automated Mangrove Species Identification (AMSI).
Wayan Eka Dharmawan, a researcher from the Oceanography Research Center (P2O) of BRIN, explained when contacted in Jakarta on Monday (October 9, 2023), that MonMang promotes the urgency of the Mangrove Health Index (MHI) in managing mangroves in Indonesia. This application is the first in the world created to monitor mangroves. MonMang was built with funding from the Archipelagic and Island States (AIS) Forum, which includes 51 participating countries. The process involved several institutions from various countries.
To be widely beneficial, MonMang is not only limited to researchers. It can also be used by the general public who are interested in mangrove forest conservation and science. According to Wayan, MonMang was created to address the separate monitoring activities conducted by different institutions, with the data stored separately. Additionally, one issue was that different institutions used different methods, making data comparisons difficult. Another challenge was the varying standards used in mangrove monitoring. These issues highlighted the need for an integrated platform for mangrove monitoring.
MonMang was introduced by Wayan Eka Dharmawan at the side event of the AIS Forum 2022, The Blue Innovation Solution Conference, held at the Bali International Convention Center (BICC) in the Nusa Dua Integrated Tourism Complex, Badung, Bali, on December 5, 2022. This application can be downloaded on mobile phones via open platforms like the AppStore and Playstore, as it supports both Android and iOS operating systems. It is also designed to be user-friendly and accessible to everyone.
However, to operate MonMang, training and certification are required to add data on mangrove monitoring to the existing database. Several features are integrated for users, such as AMSI for mangrove species identification. To use this, users simply need to photograph the mangrove with the camera feature in AMSI, and general information about the mangrove species will appear on the screen.
The AMSI feature provides users with new experiences in knowing the spatial and temporal distribution of various analysis values presented, such as MHI, carbon stock, and functional vegetation index. Another feature is the Learning Centre. "This is a feature for beginners, amateur research communities (citizen scientists), journalists, students, and the general public. It contains educational materials about mangrove forests. All the information is displayed directly on the phone screen, so you don’t need to be a mangrove expert to learn about them," said Wayan Eka.
Since its development in 2014, MonMang is now in its third version. Each version includes data updates, and in the third version, a database about mangroves was established. MonMang has also been introduced to authorities in Fiji’s coastal areas and has been tested for monitoring mangrove areas in Suva, Fiji. "Users of the MonMang application are not just from Indonesia, but also from countries like Germany, Japan, the UAE, and many more," he explained.
Wayan shared that on May 15, 2023, MonMang was even presented to senior officials from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Indonesia office. He emphasized that this application cannot stand alone and requires collaboration with various institutions to keep the database updated and serve as an educational medium for anyone.
The creation of MonMang, as done by BRIN, aligns with the values of solidarity promoted by the AIS Forum for a sustainable future of the seas. Since its establishment on November 1, 2018, through the Manado Joint-Declaration, the AIS Forum has consistently worked to strengthen cooperation and active collaboration without considering territorial boundaries, social-economic conditions, or levels of development.
The AIS Forum will hold its first Summit in Bali on October 10-11, 2023. This will be an appropriate platform to emphasize the importance of collaboration and solidarity, reinforced at the level of heads of state/government. (Anton Setiawan/Elvira Inda Sari)
About AIS Forum:
The Archipelagic and Island States (AIS) Forum is a platform for cooperation among island and archipelagic countries globally, aimed at strengthening collaboration to address global issues in four key areas: climate change mitigation and adaptation, blue economy, marine plastic waste management, and good maritime governance. The AIS Forum Summit is held to reinforce the role of the AIS Forum as a center for smart and innovative solutions, as well as a platform for mutual cooperation in advancing the global marine governance agenda.
For more information, please contact the following:
Thomas Benmetan, Head of Marketing & Communication, AIS Forum Secretariat (thomas.benmetan@undp.org).
Get the press release, narratives, photos, and videos related to the AIS Forum 2023 Summit at https://s.id/aispedia.
The Archipelagic and Island States (AIS) Forum launched the AIS Blue Hub program and AIS Research and Development Center as side events during the first AIS Forum Summit, held at the Mulia Hotel, Nusa Dua, Badung, Bali, on Monday (October 9, 2023).
