For farmers in Papua, the future of cocoa may increasingly depend on what happens beyond the boundaries of their plantations. On Wednesday, September 9, 2026, the Papua Sustainable Cocoa Roadmap was launched in Kampung Nambon, Kemtuk District, Jayapura Regency, bringing the British Embassy and the Papua provincial government together around a shared economic and environmental agenda.
The initiative places a simple idea at the centre of Papua’s cocoa sector: higher productivity should translate into better livelihoods for farmers while protecting the natural environment on which agricultural communities depend.
British Ambassador to Indonesia Dominic Jermey described the roadmap as an important step toward building a more sustainable and resilient cocoa sector in Papua. Papua Vice Governor Aryoko Rumaropen, meanwhile, said the roadmap should become a practical guide that connects agricultural productivity with farmers’ welfare, economic opportunities and environmental sustainability.
The launch was also significant because it took place during Jermey’s first official visit to Papua, giving the agricultural partnership a wider diplomatic dimension within the broader Indonesia-UK relationship.
A First Official Visit Focused on Papua’s Farmers
Jermey’s visit to Papua was not conducted in a conference room far removed from the people expected to benefit from the partnership.
The roadmap was launched among cocoa plantations in Kampung Nambon, an agricultural community in Kemtuk District. There, the British ambassador met farmers and saw directly the potential of Papua’s agricultural sector.
“It is an honour for me to make my first official visit to Papua and witness firsthand the extraordinary potential of the Papuan people,” Jermey said after the launch.
The setting was significant.
Rather than presenting sustainable agriculture simply as a policy document, the launch connected the roadmap with farmers, plantations and local communities. The initiative is intended to provide a longer-term direction for cocoa development in Papua rather than treating agricultural assistance as a series of isolated projects.
According to reports on the visit, the programme included interaction with farmers, the symbolic planting of cocoa trees and the presentation of the roadmap to the Papua provincial government. Jermey was accompanied by Papua Vice Governor Aryoko Rumaropen and met local officials, traditional leaders and farmer groups.
From CARE Papua to a Wider Roadmap
The partnership did not begin with the September launch.
British support has been channelled through the Cocoa Diversification and Agroforestry Approach, or CARE Papua, a programme designed to encourage higher agricultural productivity while promoting sustainable cocoa practices.
Jermey said the British Embassy strongly supports the Papua provincial government’s initiative through CARE Papua.
“We strongly support this initiative through the Papua Cocoa Diversification and Agroforestry Approach (CARE) programme,” he said, referring to efforts to increase agricultural productivity and promote sustainable cocoa practices.
The approach is important because cocoa farming does not exist in isolation from Papua’s wider landscape.
An agroforestry model combines agricultural production with other vegetation and crops. The broader objective is therefore not simply to produce more cocoa but to develop farming systems that can remain productive while responding to environmental pressures and climate change.
A report on the programme said CARE Papua had trained around 500 farmers between June 2025 and July 2026 in good agricultural practices and climate-resilient agroforestry. The programme has also supported crop diversification and participation in sustainable cocoa supply chains.
For farmers, that can mean a shift from simply increasing the number of trees toward improving the quality of cultivation, post-harvest handling and market participation.
Four Priorities at the Heart of Papua’s Strategy
For the Papua provincial government, the roadmap is designed around four closely connected priorities: productivity, farmers’ welfare, economic opportunities and environmental sustainability.
Aryoko Rumaropen said the roadmap would serve as a guideline for developing the cocoa sector while taking those four considerations into account.
“Cocoa development must deliver tangible benefits to local communities, particularly farmers who serve as the backbone of the sector,” Aryoko said.
His message reflects one of the most important challenges facing commodity-based development in Papua.
Increasing production alone does not necessarily guarantee higher household incomes. Farmers also need access to appropriate technology, quality planting materials, post-harvest facilities, markets and fair commercial opportunities.
That is why the roadmap is being positioned as more than an agricultural production plan.
It is intended to connect farmers with the wider economic chain, from cultivation to processing and markets, while keeping environmental considerations within the development framework.
Aryoko stressed that cooperation among government, communities, farmers and development partners would be essential if cocoa development was to remain sustainable.
Why Cocoa Matters to Papua’s Rural Economy
Cocoa has particular importance for rural communities because it can generate economic activity without requiring the transformation of the entire landscape into large-scale industrial agriculture.
The opportunity is even more relevant as Indonesia’s cocoa sector faces productivity challenges.
A report cited by Kabarpangan said Indonesia’s global ranking among cocoa producers had fallen from third place in 2010 to seventh, while around 99 per cent of Indonesian cocoa was produced by smallholder farmers. The same report said Indonesia nevertheless had substantial cocoa-processing capacity, creating an opportunity to strengthen domestic value chains.
The figures underline the importance of improving productivity at the farm level.
For Papua, the challenge is both an opportunity and a responsibility. The province has the potential to develop a distinctive cocoa sector, but expansion must be managed carefully so that economic development does not come at the expense of forests, local livelihoods or community interests.
That is where the roadmap’s emphasis on agroforestry becomes particularly relevant.
Farmers Must Remain at the Centre
The initiative’s success will be judged by changes on farms, not by the launch or roadmap.
Aryoko has stressed that farmers must remain the main actors in cocoa development.
PapuaOnline reported that the vice governor hoped the collaboration would continue beyond the launch of the document and develop into practical technical assistance in the field. The roadmap is described as a living document intended to guide the government, farmers and development partners in managing cocoa plantations sustainably.
That emphasis is important.
Agricultural programmes can struggle when policies are designed far from farming communities. Papua’s geography makes that risk even greater because many rural areas face logistical challenges and different local ecological conditions.
A successful model therefore needs to be adapted to the realities of each farming community.
Training, improved seedlings, post-harvest facilities and access to buyers can be useful only when they are linked to the actual needs and capacity of farmers.
The roadmap provides a framework, but implementation will determine whether the strategy produces lasting results.
Jayapura as an Early Point of Action
Kampung Nambon was chosen for the launch because it is one of the cocoa-producing areas in Jayapura Regency.
The location also gave the visiting British delegation an opportunity to see how the programme operates at the community level.
Reports from the visit described activities including cocoa nurseries, post-harvest drying facilities, seedling distribution and cocoa planting. These are relatively practical interventions, but they address several points where farmers can lose value before their cocoa reaches the market.
Improving post-harvest management can affect the quality and marketability of cocoa. Better planting material and cultivation techniques can influence productivity over time.
The broader objective is therefore to build a stronger production system rather than simply increase the volume of beans leaving Papua.
That distinction could become increasingly important if Papua wants to compete in higher-value cocoa markets.
A Partnership with Wider Diplomatic Significance
The cocoa roadmap also illustrates how Indonesia’s relationship with the United Kingdom can extend into practical development cooperation.
Jermey’s visit was his first official trip to Papua. The cocoa programme formed the central economic element of the visit, while other activities included discussions on conservation, education, sustainable livelihoods and human resource development.
The British Embassy’s involvement extends beyond agricultural production.
The partnership places Papua within a broader framework of sustainable development and climate resilience under the Indonesia-UK Strategic Partnership, according to the reports surrounding Jermey’s visit.
This creates an opportunity for Papua to draw on international expertise while keeping the provincial government and local communities at the centre of implementation.
For Indonesia, such cooperation can complement domestic development policies by bringing technical knowledge, international networks and potential market connections into regional economic development.
Traditional Communities and Women Also Matter
The cocoa initiative emerged during a broader British diplomatic engagement with Papua.
On the same visit, British representatives met the Papuan People Council (Majelis Rakyat Papua, or MRP), where discussions covered Indigenous communities, women, religion and natural-resource management.
MRP Chair Nerlince Wamuar welcomed the visit and called for future cooperation to produce concrete benefits for Indigenous communities and Papuan women. She particularly highlighted the need to strengthen attention to women’s health, economic participation and empowerment.
This matters for agricultural development because rural economies are rarely sustained by farmers alone.
Women frequently participate in household production, food processing, trading and community economic activities. A cocoa value chain that improves farm productivity but leaves women and other community actors outside economic opportunities would not fully achieve the inclusive development objective described by the partners.
The broader engagement therefore provides an opportunity to connect agricultural development with social empowerment.
Protecting Papua’s Natural Capital
One of the most important features of the roadmap is its insistence that economic development and environmental protection should advance together.
Papua’s forests and ecosystems are among its most important natural assets. Agricultural expansion that undermines those assets could weaken the very economic resilience the programme is intended to create.
The agroforestry approach offers one way to address that tension.
Rather than treating trees and agricultural production as competing interests, agroforestry can integrate productive crops with broader vegetation systems.
The CARE Papua approach has been described as supporting climate-resilient farming, crop diversification and sustainable supply chains.
For Papua, the long-term value could extend beyond cocoa itself.
A resilient agricultural landscape can contribute to household food security, diversify rural incomes and strengthen communities’ ability to respond to climate-related pressures.
From Roadmap to Results
The launch marks an important beginning, but it is not the final measure of success.
The next stage will require consistent implementation.
Farmers need to see whether the roadmap translates into better seedlings, stronger technical assistance, reliable post-harvest infrastructure, access to markets and more predictable incomes.
Local governments will also need to coordinate agricultural programmes so that assistance reaches communities rather than remains concentrated around pilot areas.
The private sector and development partners can help by making value chains and access to markets stronger. Universities and agricultural institutions can help by doing research, training, and coming up with new ideas.
Most importantly, farmers should remain involved in decisions affecting the development of their commodity.
That is consistent with Aryoko’s argument that collaboration among government, communities, farmers and development partners is essential.
A New Chapter for Papua’s Agricultural Economy
The launch of the Papua Sustainable Cocoa Roadmap in Kampung Nambon is more than a symbolic diplomatic event.
It represents an attempt to align Papua’s agricultural development with a changing global economy in which consumers, companies and governments are paying increasing attention to sustainability, traceability and environmental responsibility.
For Papua, that shift could create an opportunity.
The province does not need to compete only on volume. It can also build value around quality, responsible production, local participation and the unique character of its cocoa-growing landscapes.
The partnership between the Papua provincial government and the British Embassy provides an international dimension to that ambition.
It also complements Indonesia’s broader efforts to strengthen agricultural productivity and rural livelihoods.
As West Papua Voice has previously reported in stories on Papua’s sustainable development, economic progress becomes more meaningful when local communities can participate directly and benefit from it. The cocoa roadmap follows the same principle: development should be measured not only by production figures but also by improvements in household livelihoods.
Conclusion
The Papua Sustainable Cocoa Roadmap arrives at a moment when Indonesia’s cocoa sector faces both challenges and new opportunities.
For Papua, the task is to turn its agricultural potential into sustainable income without sacrificing the environmental resources that support rural communities.
The partnership with the United Kingdom offers technical and development support, while the Papua provincial government provides the local policy framework. CARE Papua adds practical work with farmers through agricultural training, agroforestry and supply-chain development.
However, the true evaluation will occur in the coming years.
If the roadmap leads to more productive farms, stronger farmer incomes, better market access and responsible land management, it could become an important model for commodity-based development in Papua.
The most important measure will remain the farmer.
When a cocoa tree produces better beans, when a family earns more from its harvest, when a young person sees agriculture as a viable livelihood and when forests remain protected, the roadmap will have moved beyond policy into real development.
That is ultimately the promise of the Papua cocoa partnership: to make sustainable agriculture not simply an environmental objective or an international cooperation project, but a practical pathway toward greater prosperity for Papua’s farming communities.
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