To realize a blue economy, it is necessary to optimize marine resource management. When coastal ecosystems are healthy, biodiversity is maintained, which directly impacts the livelihoods of coastal communities. The Ecology Foundation (YEKR) is committed to continuously supporting effective management in the Riau Islands by collaborating with various parties.

Through the Koralestari Program, supported by funding from the Global Fund for Coral Reef, Yayasan Konservasi Alam Nusantara (YKAN) is assisting the Riau Islands Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Service and local partner YEKR. They are also involved as a member of the Drafting Team for discussions on finalizing the administrative requirements for implementing the Financial Management Scheme for Regional Public Service Agencies (PPK-BLUD).

The Riau Islands Provincial Government explained that this Public Service Agency Scheme is a public service innovation introduced by the government with the aim of improving public services in a broad sense.

By implementing the PPK-BLUD (Regional Public Service Agency), the Conservation Area Technical Implementation Unit (UPTD) in the Riau Islands Province is expected to have the flexibility to directly manage revenue from environmental service fees and other revenue for conservation area operations without having to resort to the regional budget (APBD) budgeting mechanism going forward.

For the record, in the Riau Islands Province, there are 1,716,538.25 hectares of marine conservation areas managed by the local government. Expanding conservation areas is a strategic step to protect and preserve our marine ecosystems. Several designated regional conservation areas in the Riau Islands include the East Bintan Island Marine Tourism Park (TWP) (138,561.42 hectares) and Bintan Tambelan (843,609.3 hectares). Meanwhile, areas with reserve status are in Natuna Regency (297,414.51 hectares), Lingga Regency (372,058.02 hectares), and Batam City (65,868.44 hectares).