Elephants in Indonesia critically endangered as habitat areas dropped by half

Staff members from the Riau Natural Resources Conservation Center install a GPS collar on a wild elephant that has been blindfolded to reduce visual stimulation, in Riau, Indonesia, on Nov 6. AFP

Sumatran and Kalimantan elephants are now critically endangered as their habitat areas have been reduced from 42 to 21, Indonesian Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni told a meeting with various nongovernmental organizations in Jakarta earlier in May.

The government will issue a presidential instruction on rescuing the populations and habitats of Sumatran and Kalimantan elephants.

Raja Juli said the progressive step was taken as a response to the conditions of Sumatran and Kalimantan elephants and their reduced habitat.

The policy serves as an operational basis for interagency work. The presidential instruction draft is currently being circulated among ministries.