Indonesia and UAE collaborate to build Mangrove research center in Bali

• Indonesia and the UAE are partnering to build a mangrove research center in Bali.
• The center will focus on research, conservation, and education related to mangroves.
• They will construct the research center within the Ngurah Rai Forest Park, Bali's largest mangrove conservation area.

Indonesia and the UAE are collaborating to build a mangrove research center in Bali as part of a partnership aimed at promoting nature-based solutions to climate change. The Southeast Asian country hosts about 23 percent of the world's mangrove ecosystems. In the face of climate change, mangroves are essential for protecting coastal communities against rising sea levels and capturing massive amounts of emissions and greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

At COP27, the 2022 UN climate summit held in Egypt, Indonesia partnered with the UAE to launch the Mangrove Alliance for Climate, an initiative focused on nature-based efforts to address climate change issues. Dozens of other countries, including Australia and India, later joined the alliance.

As part of that cooperation, the two countries will begin constructing an international mangrove research center in Bali, following a groundbreaking ceremony held over the weekend.

“This institution represents one of the UAE’s most important contributions in its partnership with Indonesia to promote nature-based solutions to address impacts of climate change in the two countries and the world,” UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment Dr. Amna bint Abdullah Al-Dahak said in a statement on Tuesday.

“Taking into consideration the significant decline of mangrove forests in the world, the UAE is aware that losing even more mangrove trees will worsen the impacts of climate change … this research center will work to create solutions.”

Al-Dahak attended the ceremony along with Suhail Mohamed Al-Mazrouei, the UAE president's special envoy, and Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Indonesia’s coordinating minister of maritime affairs and investment.

Indonesia’s Maritime Affairs and Investment Ministry stated that the center will focus on research, conservation, and education related to mangroves. It will particularly emphasize harnessing biotechnology and innovative uses of artificial intelligence to identify and restore mangrove ecosystems.

“I’m proudly announcing that the International Mangrove Research Center will be built in a strategic location in Bali, which has already shown its success in preserving mangrove ecosystems and will garner international attention,” Pandjaitan said.

Indonesia has highlighted mangrove planting as a key feature in the international events it hosts, including the Group of 20 Meeting in 2022 and the 10th World Water Forum, which runs until May 25. The research center will be constructed within the Ngurah Rai Forest Park, Bali’s largest mangrove conservation area, covering about 1,300 hectares.

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