Repong dammar: Preserving traditions to ensure sustainability in Krui, Indonesia

An ecosystem of planted forests known as repong dammar stretches across 29,000 hectares of Lampung’s Pesisir Barat district. Dammar trees (Shorea javanica) produce a resin that go into lacquers and varnishes used by the perfumes, paints and cosmetics industries.
The Indigenous Krui people of Pesisir Barat in Sumatra, Indonesia have managed repong dammar forests for generations. The resin they harvest is supplied to national and international markets, ensuring sustainable incomes and livelihoods. 

The specific term ‘repong dammar’ refers to these planted and human-managed forests. They represent the crucial role the Krui people play in agroforestry and forest management. These forests also serve as a buffer zone that safeguards the Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park. As a habitat for wildlife, they nurture a biodiverse ecosystem of flora and fauna and play an important conservation role.

The forest and the people

For the Krui community, their connection with repong dammar is central. It is as much a part of their heritage and identity as it is a guarantor of economic stability. Communities have been extracting dammar resin and cultivating the trees for generations, all the while ensuring sustainable practices. There is no indiscriminate tree felling in repong dammar. These forests are not just a source of income but a symbol of the Kuri people’s identity. Crucially, they are also a means for them to assert ownership over the land they have traditionally managed for generations.

“We, the Krui people, are loyal to planting resin repong,” says Andiersson, a local businessman from Malaya village in Krui. He notes that the local community members can send their children to school and that most of them successfully finish their higher education “all thanks to dammar trees”. “One resin tree's cycle can last for two generations. And while several families have tried planting other crops, they have ended up losing money and returning to dammar.”

Around 80 percent of the population in Pesisir Barat rely on dammar forests for their livelihoods. Individuals earn incomes from dammar trees in various ways – tapping dammar resin, crafting dammar tree resin and collecting fallen resin from under the trees. Most households and community members benefit from these trees even when they do not own dammar tree plots. Families who do not inherit plots engage with the trees through practices like sharing cultivation for a portion of the yield. They also work as hired harvesters and may rent dammar tree plots from others.

The challenges

Yet, the resilience of repong dammar is being challenged – there are inconsistent policies, including on land use permits and the allure of more lucrative economic prospects like oil palm cultivation. These challenges threaten the delicate balance that sustains this unique ecosystem and the community's way of life.

In the 2010s, the government mandated that all commmunity members engaged in repong dammar join local cooperatives. These cooperatives maintain a list of members, along with their personal data – including land location, types of plants grown and land area owned. This meant that community members also needed to register their land. However, over two decades since an official instruction to register, the issue remains contested. While some community members have registed their land and joined cooperatives, others have chosen not to. They do not see the need to, specifically when their families have been managing the same land for generations. Andi Mustika, Head of the Unggul Jaya Cooperative, says, “Communities here are used to working on their land individually and do not fully understand how whether or not they are part of a cooperative makes a differences.”

The way forward

Despite the difficulties, these forests stand tall. “To ensure the sustained prosperity of repong dammar, collaboration among stakeholders is imperative,” says Gamma Galudra, Country Director, RECOFTC Indonesia. “Capacity-building programs that are tailored to the community's needs covering agroforestry techniques, entrepreneurial skills and governance structures are essential for empowering the locals and preserving this ecosystem,” he notes.

And there is government commitment for community empowerment. During a November 2023 visit to repong dammar, Ir. Tuti Alawiyah, Head of the Sustainable Forest Management Center, Region VI, Bandar Lampung province stated, “The government always tries to facilitate and empower communities through assistance and training to increase their knowledge and capacity.” She said that field visit activities, including bringing experts to share new knowledge and exchange information about planting resin repong, are an important part of this.

Repong dammar unveils essential lessons. It is a combination of honouring tradition, fulfilling livelihoods and adapting to evolving market demands. Moving forward, strengthening local institutions, ensuring land rights, sharing knowledge and enforcing laws are pivotal for its sustenance. As an exemplar of sustainable forest management, it represents the profound connection between culture, ecology and livelihoods.
 

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This story is part of the global initiative, Revisiting Exemplary Forest Management. In the Asia-Pacific region, the initiative is financially supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Wyss Academy for Nature.

RECOFTC’s work is made possible with the support of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the Government of Sweden.