Indonesia at COP28: Claims of Emission and Deforestation Reduction Must Lead to Net-Zero Fossil Fuels
[Press Release, December 5, 2023] President Jokowi's claims of success in Indonesia's efforts to reduce carbon emissions and deforestation from year to year should not make this country careless about the increasingly worrying climate crisis. This was conveyed by the Executive Director of the Sustainable MADANI Foundation, Nadia Hadad in response to the speech of the President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo at the G77 and the People's Republic of China (PRC) Summit in the series of the World Climate Action Summit (WCAS) COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
" President Jokowi presented several data and facts related to Indonesia's success in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation at COP28. However, Indonesia must remain resolute in its pursuit of net-zero emissions by weaning off fossil fuels, especially considering that data and facts must be viewed holistically from various perspectives ," Nadia said.
The latest report from the Global Carbon Project (GCP) shows that Indonesia will be among the top ten emitters globally in 2023. Indonesia's carbon emissions increased by 18.3% compared to 2022, the largest increase compared to other countries. The increase in emissions stems from the use of fossil fuels (particularly coal), land conversion, and Indonesia's high rate of deforestation.
On a previous occasion, President Jokowi claimed Indonesia's success in reducing carbon emissions by 42 percent by 2022, compared to the 2015 Business as Usual (BAU) plan. Jokowi also said that he had worked hard to improve the management of Forest and Other Land Use (FOLU), as well as accelerate the energy transition to new and renewable energy. He said that in FOLU management, Indonesia continues to protect and expand mangroves and rehabilitate forests and land, and reduce deforestation to its lowest point in the last 20 years.
According to Nadia, despite the achievements mentioned, there are still many notes and homework left to be done. " Considering the emission reduction claims, along with the latest GCP report, we emphasize the importance of making this data public as a form of transparency and providing a space for public participation to validate these achievements at the grassroots level. Furthermore, we must commend the Indonesian government's success in reducing the rate of deforestation. However, there are still many inconsistencies between Indonesia's emission reduction policies, which could potentially put pressure on forest conversion," Nadia emphasized.
For example, the Enhanced NDC document still provides a deforestation quota of 359 thousand hectares per year until 2030. However, to achieve Indonesia's FOLU Net Sink 2030, there is no more room for deforestation for Indonesia until 2030. Furthermore, the misalignment between emission reduction targets from the energy and forestry sectors also has the potential to pose a threat of further deforestation. " To implement a new renewable energy mix policy, one of which is through biomass co-firing, the need for wood pellets will be met through energy plantation forests. Indonesia, through the FOLU Net Sink 2030 policy, is pursuing an unrealized target of developing plantation forests covering 6.11 million hectares. However, it is noted that only 2.04 million hectares are clearly manageable. Where will the remaining needs come from? " Nadia added.
Salma Zakiyah, Program Assistant for Forests and Climate at the MADANI Berkelanjutan Foundation, added that the development of energy plantations to meet the biomass co-firing target has the potential to cause new deforestation. " Emission reduction policies in the energy sector should not burden emission reduction efforts in the forestry and land sector, so that there is no trade-off in reducing Indonesia's emissions. Currently, there are still at least 9.7 million hectares of natural forest that must be immediately protected to prevent a situation where emissions are simply transferred from one sector to another."
Salma explained that the Indonesian government must have a strong political commitment and mandate to increase climate action equitably. " Efforts to achieve political commitment and a strong mandate to increase climate action must be carried out equitably by protecting the rights of those most impacted and those contributing the least, including laborers, farmers, fishermen, and indigenous communities. This requires attention to gender and social rights, including land rights and the right to a good and healthy environment."
Therefore, Indonesia should be a leader in providing concrete examples for forest protection and achieving commitments to address the climate crisis.
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People and Nature for Sustainable Indonesia (MADANI) is a non-profit organization working to address the climate crisis through research and advocacy. Founded in 2016, MADANI Berkelanjutan strives to achieve balanced development in Indonesia between economic, ecological, and social aspects. We formulate and promote innovative solutions to the climate crisis by bridging collaboration between various parties. MADANI Berkelanjutan's current focus includes forest and climate issues, sustainable commodities, sustainable development at the regional level, and biofuels.
