Beginning its implementation in 1997 in North Sulawesi, the Indonesia Coastal Resources Management Project (CRMP) undertook various community-based coastal resource management activities at the village, regency, and provincial levels. The project first focused its activities on the enhancement of community participation and partnership between the villages and the local government in the three anchor sites: Blongko, Bentenan-Tumbak, and Talise Villages in Minahasa Regency. Enabling conditions, including policy and legal frameworks, were developed at the regency and provincial level so that village-level coastal resource management initiatives could be implemented effectively and sustained by local institutions. North Sulawesi became an “incubator” for other coastal management pilot activities and adaptations of ‘best practices’. The project began a demonstration activity that applied the lessons learned in the three anchor sites to a larger-scale implementation at the district level, working with 24 coastal villages in Likupang, located on the northern tip of North Sulawesi. The primary partners of the CRMP in North Sulawesi were the local communities in project locations. In addition, the project developed and maintained close working relationships with the local government — from the village to the provincial level. CRMP collaborated closely with various provincial and regency level government agencies including Planning Boards, Environmental Management Agencies, and Agencies for Fisheries and Marine Affairs, local parliament, and Sam Ratulangi University (UNSRAT).

Community-based project activities were designed and implemented to achieve three major outputs at the village levels, namely: (1) an Integrated Coastal Resource Management Plan at the village level, (2) Community-Based Marine Sanctuaries (Daerah Perlindungan Laut – DPL) that are supported with (3) Village Ordinances (Peraturan-Peraturan Desa – Perdes).

The village communities in these anchor site villages learned to identify their natural resource potentials and the resource problems/issues in their respective areas. They then used this information to develop village management plans. The Project employed extension officers to work in the villages and train a local counterpart and the community in ICM and community-based approaches. Small block grants were used to facilitate the demonstration of early actions and then to fund selected activities identified by the management plans. In the four anchor sites, communities successfully implemented numerous small projects, facilitated by CRMP. These included mangrove reforestation, creation of a flood dike on Kinabohutan Island and the transfer of land titles for 220 landless households. These sites are currently serving as “learning centers” for other villages in the Minahasa District that are undertaking village-level coastal management initiatives.

The establishment of community marine sanctuaries was one of the most successful “best practices” that is now being replicated widely throughout North Sulawesi and increasingly in other locations as well. Studies have documented an increased abundance and diversity of fish and improved coral cover in the Blongko Marine Sanctuary between 1997 and 2003.

Scaling-up of the community-based coastal resources management (CB-CRM) model derived from anchor sites occurred in two sub-districts of Likupang Barat and Likupang Timur with 24 coastal villages. The scaling-up program resulted in the establishment of 19 marine sanctuaries and four mangrove sanctuaries — most of which are supported by village ordinances, management committees, management plans, and village profiles. There were over 850 hectares of marine sanctuaries established in the 24 assisted-villages and almost 400 hectares of mangrove sanctuaries in five assisted-villages.

A major success in 2002 was the creation of a new coastal management law (Perda) by the Minahasa Regency legislature, the first of its type among Indonesia’s 400 coastal districts. This has become a model for other kabupatens in the country to follow. The law sets out key principles, goals, benefits and priorities for community-based management, transparency and accountability, while also recognizing traditional rights. The Perda was developed through a participatory, transparent and accountable public consultation process and was formally enacted on June 26, 2002 as Perda of Minahasa Regency Number 2 Year 2002 concerning Coastal Resources Management.

The Provincial Parliament (DPRD) of North Sulawesi also developed and passed a province-wide Community-Based Coastal Resource Management Law on May 26, 2003 (Perda of the North Sulawesi Province Number 38 Year 2003). The enactment of this law followed the passing into law of the Minahasa Regency Coastal Management Perda the year before. Each law is complementary with laws at other levels, and is created in such a way as to be complementary with the new National Coastal Management Law currently being reviewed with the State Secretariat (Sekretariat Negara – Setneg) and the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights (Departemen Kehakiman dan HAM).