Raja Ampat Designated As World Biosphere Reserve By UNESCO

JAKARTA - The Raja Ampat Islands, West Papua Province, Indonesia, are now officially recognized as a world biosphere reserve by UNESCO, the UN Agency for Education, Science and Culture.

Quoted from the official UNESCO website, on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, 30 new biosphere reserves are set worldwide. One of them is Raja Ampat, who is considered to have his own uniqueness.

Raja Ampat is considered to have uniqueness and an innovative approach to sustainable development. Raja Ampat stands out because of his extraordinary biodiversity.

This determination became an important milestone after Raja Ampat won the UNESCO Global Geopark title in 2023. With this latest award, Raja Ampat is one of the few places in the world that holds two international titles from UNESCO simultaneously.

The Raja Ampat biosphere reserve covers an area of about 135 thousand square kilometers, with more than 610 islands, of which only 34 islands are inhabited.

Located in the heart of the Karang Reef Triangle, the Raja Ampat region has the world's richest coral reef ecosystem. There are more than 75 percent of global coral species, more than 1,320 species of coral fish, and five endangered species of rare sea turtles, including scaling turtles.

In addition, Raja Ampat is also a common ground between conservation, science, traditional knowledge, and sustainable development, which provides benefits to the local community and the world.

This is in line with the function of the biosphere reserve according to UNESCO, namely as a 'life laboratory' where people, scientists, and governments work together in the three main pillars.

Starting from preserving biodiversity and landscapes, encouraging sustainable social development and economy, as well as increasing understanding through research, education, training, and knowledge sharing.