Lore Landu National Park management empowers local communities

Palu, SE Sulawesi, Mar 16 (Antara) - In the last three years, the management of Lore Lindu National Park (TNLL), located in Palu, Southeast Sulawesi, has been empowering several local communities who reside in the surrounding areas of the park. The programs for empowering the local communities have had a positive impact on them during the past two years, Head of Technical Conservation of TNLL Ahmad Yani stated here on Monday. During the two-year period, four community groups living in four villages have been empowered by the TNLL management. The groups comprise members belonging to both genders. The community groups comprising farmers from Bunga village, Palolo sub-district, are all males. They had earlier encroached upon areas of the national park by clearing the lands in the forest for living and farming. "We have established the group and empowered the people, hoping that they will not disturb the areas anymore," Ahmad noted, adding that the people now reside in the new settlement. Meanwhile, the other three empowered community groups have all female members. In 2015, the TNLL management will empower 24 groups spread across 12 resorts in Sigi and Poso districts, in which major sections of the national park are located. "A total of 60 villages are located in the national park area. If the people are not empowered, they will encroach upon the national park and disturb the area by clearing up the lands, initiating planting activities, and exploiting the natural resources such as wood, rattan, and animals, including those that are rare," Ahmad emphasized. The empowerment programs aim to encourage the communities, so that they will participate in activities to improve welfare. "By doing these activities, the communities also participate in protecting and conserving the national park," Ahmad added.