Building the Foundation for Sustainable Blue Finance: CTC Shares Bali and Maluku Marine Conservation Financing Initiatives at National Roundtable

Sustainable financing is one of the most critical challenges in ensuring the long-term management of marine protected areas (MPAs). Establishing conservation areas is an important milestone, but without stable and flexible financial mechanisms, management cannot be sustained once initial project funding ends, leaving MPAs vulnerable to gaps in enforcement, monitoring, and community support.

Working closely with provincial governments and conservation partners, Coral Triangle Center (CTC) is helping establish effective, self-independence governance and financial systems that will enable MPAs to manage funding more effectively. In Bali and Maluku, CTC is supporting the development of innovative institutional financing mechanisms to strengthen the long-term sustainability of MPAs.

Since 2024, CTC has been supporting the Bali Provincial Marine and Fisheries Agency (DKP Bali) in establishing a Regional Public Service Agency (Badan Layanan Umum Daerah/BLUD) for the provincial MPA Management Unit. Once established, the BLUD will give the management unit greater financial flexibility to generate and manage its own revenues.

Over the past two years, the initiative has achieved several important milestones. CTC supported the development of a BLUD roadmap, facilitated a study visit to West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) to learn from an established BLUD model, and assisted the formation of the official BLUD Document Preparation Team. Key administrative, governance, financial management, and Minimum Service Standards (SPM) documents have now been completed and are currently under review by the Provincial Government before moving forward to the evaluation and legalization stages.

Beyond preparing the required documents, the process has involved strengthening institutional readiness across multiple government agencies. Building a shared understanding of the BLUD mechanism, coordinating multiple stakeholders, and refining complex regulatory documents through several rounds of review have required continuous facilitation and technical assistance throughout the process.

As the initiative moves toward legalization, CTC continues to support the Provincial Government through technical assistance, capacity building in financial management and business planning, knowledge exchange with other provinces, and partnerships with NGOs and the private sector. Looking ahead, strengthening monitoring systems and diversifying revenue sources through tourism and strategic partnerships will be essential to ensuring the long-term sustainability of Bali’s MPAs.

In Maluku, CTC has also supported the establishment of a Regional Technical Implementation Unit (Unit Pelaksana Teknis Daerah/UPTD) to manage 27 marine protected areas covering more than 4.35 million hectares, providing an important institutional foundation for sustainable marine conservation across the province. Established through Governor Regulation No. 6 of 2026, the UPTD was developed with support from CTC together with Yayasan Konservasi Alam Nusantara (YKAN) and the Blue Abadi Fund (BAF).

With the UPTD now formally established, the institution is entering the next phase of development. Internal restructuring within the Provincial Marine and Fisheries Agency is still underway, the organizational structure has yet to be fully staffed, and additional human resource capacity will be needed to effectively manage conservation areas spread across Maluku’s vast archipelago.

To strengthen the institution’s long-term financial sustainability, CTC is now supporting the province’s transition toward BLUD status. This process will help create a more flexible and sustainable financing system. First, by diversifying revenue streams through marine tourism, corporate social responsibility (CSR) partnerships, and other innovative financing mechanisms; and second, by strengthening governance, technical capacity, scientific data, and collaboration across government, communities, and development partners to sustain those financing mechanisms.

CTC shared these progress updates during the 3rd Indonesia Blue Finance Development Partners Roundtable, organized by Rare Indonesia on 20 July 2026 in Jakarta. The forum brought together representatives from government, development partners, and conservation organizations to exchange strategies for strengthening sustainable marine financing in Indonesia.

Through the progress achieved in Bali and Maluku, CTC demonstrates that sustainable blue finance begins with strong institutions. By helping governments establish effective governance systems, strengthen institutional capacity, and diversify financing sources, these initiatives are laying the groundwork for marine protected areas that are better equipped to conserve Indonesia’s extraordinary marine biodiversity while supporting the livelihoods of coastal communities.

Writer: Asia Salsabilla
Photos: Rili Djohani/CTC, Alex del Olmo, Purwanto/CTC, Kasman/CTC