THE ROLE OF U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (USAID) TO INDONESIA’S MARINE CONSERVATION IN NORTH MALUKU PROVINCE (2017-2020)

Abstract

This is a study about the growing problems that threatened the ocean with considerations of the negative impacts of human-induced changes on the marine ecosystems and how the U.S. through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) deals with these threats specifically in Indonesia. Hence, this study aims to offer comprehensive insights into the role of USAID and management effort conducted in form of marine protected areas (MPAs), which also represents the U.S. and Indonesia development cooperation in bolstering efforts to safeguard marine biodiversity. In this study, a qualitative study is used to review related literature and a descriptive analysis method to analyze the phenomenon. This study applies a green political theory as a main theoretical concept followed by the concept of sustainable development and K.J. Holsti’s international cooperation theory. As a result, this study concludes that the role performed by USAID was the implementation of the Sustainable Ecosystems Advanced (SEA) Project for the period 2016 to 2021, with technical and grant assistance to zoning or mapping conservation region in North Maluku Province. Overall, USAID worked with Indonesia through both civil society and the government in order to facilitate and accelerate Indonesia’s economic and social development with marine environmental protection in a balanced manner