Apart from normative commitments to democracy and human rights, calling for the mainstreaming of gender within all institutions, programmes and projects related to the forestry sector is fundamental to embolden full inclusion of women in society. Indonesian women, comprising 49.7% of the total population, are a powerful driver for the country’s development. Out of 65 million households, nearly nine million households both in urban and rural areas are female-headed. Rural female-headed households, in particular, often bear various responsibilities in meeting daily subsistence needs. Women play an active role in deriving natural capital from forests and often contribute to the sustainable management of forest resources. However, despite their significant contribution, women’s knowledge and roles in managing forest resources are not fully recognised by forest-related policies and programmes, which often hinders rural women’s engagement in decision-making processes. The Policy Brief outlines key national policies that contribute to advancing gender mainstreaming in the forestry sector including Presidential Instruction No. 9/2000 on gender mainstreaming in national development planning; Ministry of Forest Regulation No. 65/2011 on guidelines for gender responsive planning and budgeting in the forestry sector; and gender considerations in the national REDD+ strategy. Recommendations on how to reduce the gender gap in the forestry sector are provided, they are: to incorporate gender analysis into policy processes in the forestry sector; strengthen the capacity of the Gender Working Group to encourage stronger collaboration among relevant ministries and agencies; and to embed direct engagement of women into decision-making process within existing forestry-related activities.