Hingga semester kedua di tahun 2020, Pandemi Covid 19 telah memukul mundur beragam lini kehidupan. Bahkan menghentikan laju beberapa sektor diantaranya. Meskipun demikian, masih ada ruang-ruang pekerjaan yang tidak bisa serta merta berhenti. Perlindungan terhadap kelestarian kelautan di wilayah Kepala Burung Papua Barat misalnya.

Merespon hal tersebut, KEHATI sebagai Administrator Blue Abadi Fund (BAF) telah berupaya untuk memastikan rangkaian program tetap berjalan dan keputusan penting tetap dapat disepakati. Seperti halnya menggelar pertemuan Government Committee (GC) dengan menggunakan teknologi komunikasi dan menjalankan protokol kesehatan. Upaya adaptasi ini dilakukan agar keputusan-keputusan penting terkait jalannya upaya perlindungan di wilayah Kepala Burung Papua tidak terhenti.

Digelar pada 3 September 2020, pertemuan GC ke-8 telah menghubungkan seluruh anggota GC sebagai pengambil keputusan tertinggi, anggota komite-komite penasehat (SCAC, LRC, dan IAC) dan administrator Blue Abadi Fund, baik yang berada di Jakarta, Bali, Papua, New Zealand, maupun Amerika Serikat. Pertemuan ini menghasilkan beberapa keputusan penting. Keputusan pertama adalah disepakatinya siklus hibah off-cycle atau hibah luar siklus yang akan diberikan kepada 4 mitra. Fokus kegaitan pada siklus ini adalah patroli kawasan konservasi perairan daerah dan adat, serta monitoring satwa kunci. Kegiatan ini penting untuk terus dijalankan karena pencurian ataupun pengerusakan sumber daya alam masih saja terjadi pada masa pandemi.

Keputusan kedua adalah disepakatinya perubahan beberapa pasal pada Manual Operasional BAF. Diantaranya yaitu, (i) masuknya Nia Tero menjadi anggota GC baru sebagai tindak lanjut dukungan organisasi ini pada BAF, (ii) adanya “rasio hibah” khusus untuk pendanaan bagi organisasi masyarakat sipil Papua Barat termasuk Dewan Adat, dan (iii) penyempurnaan ruang lingkup tugas Science and Conservation Advisory Committee (SCAC) and Local Representative Community (LRC) untuk bersama-sama memberikan pertimbangan dalam penilaian proposal yang masuk untuk mengakses pendanaan BAF. Adanya peran SCAC dan LRC ini diharapkan dapat menciptakan keseimbangan kriteria penilaian proposal, antara aspek teknis konservasi kelautan, sosial, pengelolaan KKP, serta aspek budaya, masyarakat adat, dan gender. Melalui perspektif baru ini, peran masyarakat lokal akan menjadi sangat penting dalam perencanaan, pelaksanaan, pengawasan, serta keberlanjutan program konservasi di Bentang Laut Kepala Burung, Papua Barat.

Until the second semester in 2020, the Covid 19 pandemic has repelled various lines of life. It even stopped the pace of several sectors among them. Even so, there are still work spaces that cannot stop immediately. Protection of marine sustainability in the Bird’s Head region of West Papua, for example.

In response to this, KEHATI as the Administrator of the Blue Abadi Fund (BAF) has made efforts to ensure that the series of programs continues and important decisions can be agreed upon. Such as holding a Government Committee (GC) meeting using communication technology and implementing health protocols. This adaptation effort is carried out so that important decisions related to the course of protection efforts in the Bird’s Head region of Papua do not stop.

Held on 3 September 2020, the 8th GC meeting connected all GC members as the highest decision makers, members of the advisory committees (SCAC, LRC, and IAC) and administrators of the Blue Abadi Fund, both in Jakarta, Bali, Papua, New Zealand, and the United States. This meeting resulted in several important decisions. The first decision is agreement on off-cycle grants or off-cycle grants to be awarded to 4 partners. The focus of activities in this cycle is the patrol of regional and customary marine conservation areas, as well as monitoring of key animals. This activity is important to continue because theft or destruction of natural resources still occurs during the pandemic.

The second decision was the agreement to amend several articles in the BAF Operational Manual. Among them are (i) the entry of Nia Tero to become a new member of the GC as a follow-up to this organization’s support to the BAF, (ii) a special “grant ratio” for funding for West Papuan civil society organizations including the Customary Council, and (iii) improvement of its scope the task of the Science and Conservation Advisory Committee (SCAC) and Local Representative Community (LRC) to jointly provide considerations in the assessment of proposals submitted to access BAF funding. The role of SCAC and LRC is expected to create a balance of proposal assessment criteria, between technical aspects of marine conservation, social, MPA management, as well as aspects of culture, indigenous peoples, and gender. Through this new perspective, the role of local communities will be very important in planning, implementing, monitoring, and the sustainability of conservation programs in the Bird’s Head Seascape, West Papua.