VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Jakarta (VOI News) - The Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FCPI) held a panel discussion on Friday (31 Jan) on Climate diplomacy. The panel also discussed whether the disappointment of the COP (Conference of Parties) 25 in Madrid will turn into progress at the COP-26 to be held in November 2020 in Glasgow, Scotland. The panel consisted of Co-Lead Negotiator for Article 6 of Paris Agreement Moekti Handajani Soejachmoen, Director for Development, Economic and Environmental Affairs Agustaviano Sofjan, Senior Economist and Research Associate of World Research Institute (WRI) Indonesia Sonny Mumbunan and the Ambassador of the European Union to Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam H.E Vincent Piket. The panel was moderated by Dr. Dino Patti Djalal the founder of FCPI. Director Agustaviano was very optimistic about Indonesia’s plan for its NDC (Nationally Determined Contributions) target and says the country is very vulnerable to climate change and hence it is very committed to the Paris agreement.

“For Indonesia, I think we are still committed to our commitment to the Paris Agreement. And that's why Indonesia's NDC target is 29% and 41% if supported by International, by 2030. For Indonesia, we have already our indices and we are going to be committed to that. It is ambitious, yes, but we need to set the standards. For Indonesia, we are committed. For, Indonesia is an archipelago state with the coastline which is the second-longest coastline in the world. We are vulnerable to climate change. If there is sea-level rise, it will affect the coastal people. It will affect their livelihoods. That's why we are committed to trying to tackle climate change,” said Agustaviano.

The COP-25 at Madrid drew a lot of criticism for not coming to an agreement about Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. According to the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Article 6 of the Paris Agreement aims at promoting integrated, holistic and balanced approaches that will assist governments in implementing their NDCs through voluntary international cooperation. Further according to the ICC, under this mechanism, countries with low emissions would be allowed to sell their exceeding allowance to larger emitters, with an overall cap of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, ensuring their net reduction. Supply and demand for emissions allowances would lead to the establishment of a global carbon price.

It is hoped that the COP-26, which is to be held in Glasgow later this year, would make up for disappointing lack of commitment shown by the participants in COP-25. (VOI/SAYEE SHREE L.R/AHM)