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The Bird's Head Seascape (BHS), Papua, Indonesia is located within the epicenter of global marine biodiversity and has been the focus of recent conservation efforts to protect marine resources. Here, we provide an overview of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) progress in the BHS over the past decade, including establishment history, changes in management effectiveness and ecosystem health, as well as examining trends in tourism growth. While generally viewed as a conservation success story, we reflect on both successes and challenges in the BHS, identifying where we need to continue to improve and adapt in response to rapid economic and environmental change. As of 2020, BHS MPAs cover 5.1 million ha across 23 MPAs. As expected, management effectiveness is steadily increasing in BHS MPAs—although newer MPAs face substantial capacity gaps. Tourism is rapidly growing—with an almost 3,000% increase in tourist visits between 2007 and 2018. Overall, hard coral cover in monitored BHS MPAs remained stable at 33% from 2010 to 2019, although trends in reef fish biomass were more variable. Given continued conservation challenges in the region, BHS MPAs are successfully preventing biodiversity loss while providing ecosystem services for local communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid growth of Indonesia's marine protected area (MPAs) estate in Indonesia, reaching 23.9 million hectares by January 2020, attention needs to be focused on strengthening the effectiveness of MPA management. Consolidating and expanding protection of Indonesia's marine resources is critical with increasing pressure from a fast-expanding population, illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, pollution, coastal development, unsustainable tourism and climate change. Biodiversity conservation must therefore concurrently consider multiple economic sectors such as fisheries and tourism, and their synergies with MPA management. This paper aims to outline the current landscape of fisheries and marine tourism pertaining to area-based conservation in Indonesia, to inform and support improved integration into effective MPA management. Four areas to focus efforts were identified: diversification of governance types of community-based management, improved coordination between fisheries and MPAs during planning and management implementation, the development and support of pathways for sustainable tourism, and planning for future conditions. Sustainable development for fisheries and tourism must be incorporated into all aspects of MPA management, whilst recognising that current management systems are insufficient to ensure long-term sustainability for natural resources and local communities, and strategies need to increase resilience of social-ecological systems in anticipation of future conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indonesia's marine ecosystems are among the most diverse in the world, supporting extensive critical habitats with strong connections to coastal communities. To keep pace with increasing pressures on the environment, conservation efforts need to be strengthened and expanded. The Government of Indonesia has committed to protecting marine ecosystems through establishing 32.5 million ha of marine protected areas (MPAs), with 20 million ha effectively managed, by 2030. Therefore, collating data on the status and progress of marine conservation efforts nationally is important to show the extent to which this target is being reached. Here we provide an overview of the status and trends of spatial coverage and management effectiveness of MPAs in Indonesia. As of 2020, Indonesia had made good progress in reaching its target – with 23.9 million ha MPA established and some —albeit slow— increases in MPA management effectiveness. Moving forward, we recommend that marine protection efforts in Indonesia need to balance MPAs expansion with improvement in effectiveness. Improvement of management effectiveness will require significant efforts, including improving institutional coordination, ensuring adequate human and financial resources, and strengthened monitoring, evaluation, and learning to inform adaptive management. Future MPA expansion should focus on addressing specific gaps in the existing network, such as increasing coastal habitat representation, and connectivity, or increasing recognition of a diversity of governance approaches (e.g., by communities or private entities). Progress over recent decades, however, suggests Indonesia is making progress on its marine protection goals and is well placed to meet potential future targets. [Display omitted] • As of January 2020, Indonesia has protected 7.3 % of Indonesia's waters. • MPAs in Indonesia are managed under two national ministries that uses different MPA frameworks. • Significant efforts are still needed to ensure all MPAs are effectively managed. • Indonesia should focus on both MPA expansion and improving management of existing MPAs. • EVIKA improves Indonesia's E-KKP3K management effectiveness assessment tool using inputs, processes, outputs, and outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]