Description
Indigenous peoples in Resye, Womom and Syukwo Villages, Tobouw District, Tambrauw Regency, Southwest Papua Province have a very large customary territory with abundant natural resources. Traditionally, they have protected forests and seas, namely by carrying out "Nat Gato Tom Fowa" or commonly referred to as "Sasi" by indigenous peoples in the Papua and Maluku regions through a joint agreement to protect an area from wildlife hunting and ecosystem restoration as well as enrichment of types of flora and fauna that are considered population and existence to be declining. Nat Gato Tom Fowa or the agreement to protect indigenous forest and marine areas has succeeded in managing the capture of wild boar, deer and other wildlife as well as fishing at sea sustainably for economic resources. Yan Piet Hein Yessa or familiarly called Yan become concerned and wanted to save wild animals in the indigenous territory. The man born in 1984 is one of the six owners of customary forest rights belonging to the Yessa clan. Yan led the enactment of "Nat Gato Tom Fowa" to be agreed upon with the other six customary rights owners on September 6, 2019. The high potential of Womom Village and Resye Village makes people start thinking about managing them independently to improve community wellfare. In addition, there are also groups of women who carry out practices in processing garden products and game products which is a habit carried out by the community. But occasionally women's groups carry out activities to collect shellfish, sea worms, and others at certain times and season
Nature Element: Forests, Oceans and coasts
Type of Action: Access and benefit sharing agreement, Advocacy for land and water rights, Ecosystem protection
Sustainable Development Element: Jobs and livelihoods (SDG 1) , Food security (SDG 2) , Sustainable communities and disaster risk reduction (SDG 11) , Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)
Nature Element: Forests, Oceans and coasts
Type of Action: Access and benefit sharing agreement, Advocacy for land and water rights, Ecosystem protection
Sustainable Development Element: Jobs and livelihoods (SDG 1) , Food security (SDG 2) , Sustainable communities and disaster risk reduction (SDG 11) , Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)
Environmental Impacts
In the face of climate change that increasingly has a direct impact on indigenous peoples, community resilience and concrete practices need to be strengthened at the community level. Some coastal areas of Abun in Tambrauw Regency are quite vulnerable to extreme storms, floods, sea level rise, abrasion, landslides, and in some locations indicated drought. This is contained in a climate risk assessment compiled by WWF-ID with climatologists in 2022-2023. The study said the level of vulnerability varies from moderate to high because it is influenced by community capacity, type of climate risk, supporting infrastructure, government systems and capacity, data and information, and programs and policies in areas that have not targeted disaster programs holistically. For this reason, WWF-ID Papua Program together with Pioneer Partners through the VCA program voice action for climate change in an equitable manner has increased the capacity of the community to deal with climate change adaptively and prepare mitigation measures. On the importance of recognizing and protecting indigenous territories from uncontrolled exploitation and improving the economy with ecotourism businesses managed by indigenous people in Womom Village and Resye Village. Pioneer partners and indigenous peoples in Tambrauw District, Southwest Papua Province followed up the mapping process facilitated by WWF-ID Papua Program and BRWA to the stage of verifying the customary territory of a clan and socializing the Recognition of Protection of Customary Law Peoples (PPMHA), as well as registration of clan customary territories through the BRWA platform. This process successfully mapped the Abuntat Yessa area of 58,019.15 ha and received recognition from the local government through Regional Regulation No.06/2018 and continued in the verification process by the Tambrauw Regency PPMHA Committee.
Sustainable Development Impacts
Scalability
Yan's pioneering efforts to implement customary rules in the form of Nat Gato Tom Fowa received support from WWF-ID Papua Program. Yan held several meetings to convince other customary rights owners in the two villages to adopt Nat Gato Tom Fowa. Local governments at the district and provincial levels also support the Nat Gato Tom Fowa program continued by indigenous peoples and replicate it in other locations as a form of conservation solutions based on local wisdom
Replicability
Nat Gato Tom Fowa which is a form of protection of an area, both forest and sea, from excessive exploitation of natural resources and ecosystem restoration as well as enrichment of types of flora and fauna that are considered to have decreased in population through mutual agreement by indigenous peoples in Resye Village and Womom Village, Tambrauw Regency. This protection can be applied in a region if all communities who own customary rights have an agreement and recognize it together. In addition, support is needed from the village to provincial level governments.
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