Community Engagement
1. Free, Prior and Informed Consent
We respect the rights of indigenous and local communities to give or withhold their free, prior and informed consent for development or conservation of land to which they hold legal and customary rights.
When the company is granted a location permit (Ijin Lokasi) for new development areas, we identify the local communities living in the area and conduct socialisation before commencing any operations. The socialisation usually consists of informing the communities of the company’s permit, government and company policies regarding land compensation, development plans, land valuation approach, process of verifying land ownership and requirement for proof of ownership, and procedures for land measurements and compensation.
After the socialisation and the completion of the due diligence process, compensation will be made to those who have accepted the company’s off er for their land. All land transfers are documented and witnessed by members of the local government.
We do not condone any land grabbing or forceful eviction of indigenous and local communities from their lands.
Conflict Management
We are supportive of responsible and peaceful resolution of conflicts that may arise due to our operations. Land disputes involving rightful land ownership are among the common conflicts that we come across. We believe in working with the relevant stakeholders to ensure that conflicts are resolved through a process that is agreed upon by all appropriate parties. We are committed to resolving conflicts in an open, transparent and consultative manner.
2. Smallholder Partnership
As palm oil operations are labour intensive, and new developments are often in rural parts of Indonesia, we firmly believe that commercial palm oil cultivation is an effective solution for socio-economic development and poverty alleviation. We are committed to leading community growth in areas where we are operationally present.
Through our FPIC exercise carried out prior to new development, we are able to identify communities that are interested to partner with the Company in plantation development. We work with the indigenous and local communities through plasma schemes partnerships whereby the company assists plasma farmers in developing and managing their plots until the trees reach productive ages. The plasma plots are then handed back to the plasma farmers who will sell their harvests from their plots to the company at government-determined prices. These partnerships provide sustainable incomes for thousands of smallholders, directly impacting local economic growth and living standards.
As at the end of 2016, we partnered with more than 1,000 smallholders, representing 15% of the total plantation area managed by Bukit Berlian Plantation. Throughout these years, our field officers provided practical training, quality seed stock, advice on fertiliser and pesticide procurement and usage, exposure to new farming technologies, assistance with land titling and transportation of FFB to palm oil mills.
As part of our sustainability policy, we will support smallholders by sharing sustainable best practices, providing technical assistance and including them in our Group's supply chain
3. Community Development
In addition to the partnerships with smallholders, we establish and implement community development projects as an affirmation of the Group’s commitment to community growth. Our programmes are structured around education, healthcare and infrastructure. We often organise community development activities in villages that are located within or adjacent to our estates and are therefore those directly impacted by our operations.
Our Community Development Officers (CDO) are the chief liaison for community members. They are in the field meeting estate residents and locals, building relationships and mapping ambitions, concerns and resources. Typical tasks include collecting data on village living conditions and population numbers, brainstorming new development activities with community members, designing and proposing new programmes to the regional managers and sustainability coordinators, implementing projects with local residents, liaising with local government agencies and presenting and explaining Bukit Berlian Plantation operational activities, environmental impact, and environmental and social programmes
We respect the rights of indigenous and local communities to give or withhold their free, prior and informed consent for development or conservation of land to which they hold legal and customary rights.
When the company is granted a location permit (Ijin Lokasi) for new development areas, we identify the local communities living in the area and conduct socialisation before commencing any operations. The socialisation usually consists of informing the communities of the company’s permit, government and company policies regarding land compensation, development plans, land valuation approach, process of verifying land ownership and requirement for proof of ownership, and procedures for land measurements and compensation.
After the socialisation and the completion of the due diligence process, compensation will be made to those who have accepted the company’s off er for their land. All land transfers are documented and witnessed by members of the local government.
We do not condone any land grabbing or forceful eviction of indigenous and local communities from their lands.
Conflict Management
We are supportive of responsible and peaceful resolution of conflicts that may arise due to our operations. Land disputes involving rightful land ownership are among the common conflicts that we come across. We believe in working with the relevant stakeholders to ensure that conflicts are resolved through a process that is agreed upon by all appropriate parties. We are committed to resolving conflicts in an open, transparent and consultative manner.
2. Smallholder Partnership
As palm oil operations are labour intensive, and new developments are often in rural parts of Indonesia, we firmly believe that commercial palm oil cultivation is an effective solution for socio-economic development and poverty alleviation. We are committed to leading community growth in areas where we are operationally present.
Through our FPIC exercise carried out prior to new development, we are able to identify communities that are interested to partner with the Company in plantation development. We work with the indigenous and local communities through plasma schemes partnerships whereby the company assists plasma farmers in developing and managing their plots until the trees reach productive ages. The plasma plots are then handed back to the plasma farmers who will sell their harvests from their plots to the company at government-determined prices. These partnerships provide sustainable incomes for thousands of smallholders, directly impacting local economic growth and living standards.
As at the end of 2016, we partnered with more than 1,000 smallholders, representing 15% of the total plantation area managed by Bukit Berlian Plantation. Throughout these years, our field officers provided practical training, quality seed stock, advice on fertiliser and pesticide procurement and usage, exposure to new farming technologies, assistance with land titling and transportation of FFB to palm oil mills.
As part of our sustainability policy, we will support smallholders by sharing sustainable best practices, providing technical assistance and including them in our Group's supply chain
3. Community Development
In addition to the partnerships with smallholders, we establish and implement community development projects as an affirmation of the Group’s commitment to community growth. Our programmes are structured around education, healthcare and infrastructure. We often organise community development activities in villages that are located within or adjacent to our estates and are therefore those directly impacted by our operations.
Our Community Development Officers (CDO) are the chief liaison for community members. They are in the field meeting estate residents and locals, building relationships and mapping ambitions, concerns and resources. Typical tasks include collecting data on village living conditions and population numbers, brainstorming new development activities with community members, designing and proposing new programmes to the regional managers and sustainability coordinators, implementing projects with local residents, liaising with local government agencies and presenting and explaining Bukit Berlian Plantation operational activities, environmental impact, and environmental and social programmes