PALMOILMAGAZINE, SEKADAU – The SPKS District of Sekadau was honored with an accolade from the Governor of West Kalimantan for its role as a driving force behind the Independent Smallholders’ Institution’s development. This achievement was marked by the district being granted the inaugural Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) certificate in West Kalimantan Province.
The Chairman of SPKS District of Sekadau, Bernadus Mohtar, received the award in person on the 78th anniversary of Indonesian Independence Day. The ceremony took place on Thursday, August 17, 2023, at the West Kalimantan Province office.
Bernadus Mohtar said that the award is the performance result of what SPKS District of Sekadau did to develop independent smallholders directly in the field, starting from reinforcing institutions, accelerating data to get Cultivation Documents, and smallholders replanting program.
“We also delivered thoughts, consideration to formulate regional action plan – sustainable palm oil, and the cooperation that SPKS Sekadau developed, got ISPO certificate in 2022,” Mohtar said, as in the official statement to Palmoilmagazine.com, Thursday (17/8/2023).
Also Read : SPKS Aims to Certify 4000 Members with ISPO and RSPO by 2025
The cooperation that got ISPO certificate is Koperasi Persada Engkesik Lestari within 300 smallholders and their plantations laid about 650 hectares in Village of Engkesik District of Sekadau, West Kalimantan Province and becomes the first union that got ISPO certificate in the province.
General Secretary of SPKS, Mansuetus Darto said, SPKS is in charge and committed to encourage sustainable certification in Indonesia and to improve smallholders’ palm oil plantation governance.
“SPKS targeted that in 2023-2025 there would be about 4.000 independent smallholders that got ISPO and Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certificates. SPKS in the past year could encourage five unions to get the two certificates. It means, if every stakeholder could cooperate, we would accelerate sustainable certification for independent smallholders,” he said.
For information, the members of SPKS that got ISPO and RSPO certificate reached 1400 smallholders in Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and Sumatera. (T2)
