VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

National Development Planning Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro said Indonesia and the European Union (EU) agreed to fulfill the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which were marked by the launch of the Blue Book 2019.

"In this Blue Book, there will be activities agreed upon between the EU and Indonesia, represented by Bappenas, including environmental, education and health issues," Bambang said at the launch of the Blue Book 2019 in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Indonesia received development fund assistance worth 100 million euros from the European Union, in supporting the realization of cooperation programs between the two parties, focused on three sustainable development sectors.

The three sectors of the cooperation program include environment, education and health.

Blue Book 2019 is an annual report on sustainable economic development cooperation to reduce the effects of climate change. This publication highlights the various achievements of development programs in Indonesia supported by the EU, as well as its member countries.

Different from the previous year focusing on climate change, in Blue Book 2019 both parties agreed to devote themselves to the theme of sustainable development.

The Chancellor of the EU Delegation for Indonesia, Charles-Michel Geurts, said the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are commitments that can be adopted by all countries, including Indonesia.

In this case, Indonesia can implement strategies at the national, provincial, district and city levels.

"In the last ten years, the project that has been completed has been carried out between Indonesia and the EU and was worth 500 million euros. But currently, the value is around 100 million euros for projects that are still underway," Geurts said.

There is also an EU-Indonesia development cooperation in the environmental sector that has been completed, including facilities to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation, and studies to strengthen Indonesian certification for sustainable palm oil (ISPO).

Meanwhile, the education sector has created 1,600 scholarships, given annually to students and lecturers from Indonesia through the Erasmus program, along with other scholarships from EU member countries.

For the health sector, the EU and its member countries contribute more than 44 percent of the total global funds to deal with AIDS and tuberculosis, with US $ 350 million having been delivered to Indonesia. (ant)