Erwida Maulia, The Jakarta Post 24 May 10;
Indonesia is set to make a “breakthrough” in global climate change deals as President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono kicks off on Tuesday evening his three-day visit to Oslo for climate and forestry meetings.
Presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal said Monday in Jakarta the President would specifically seeking to put the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) Plus scheme into real actions by sealing a deal with Norway.
REDD Plus is a scheme in which forestry countries managing to preserve their forests will be given incentives for doing so, and is part of the Copenhagen Accord agreed by countries attending the COP15 Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December last year.
“But, although REDD Plus has been included in the Copenhagen Accord, in reality it hasn’t been put into any actions; there’s no implementation of it yet,” Dino addressed a press conference at the Presidential Office.
“President Yudhoyono will meet with Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and they’re planned to sign a letter of intent on partnership in forestry sector.
“The partnership will signify the first international support for the implementation of REDD Plus,” he added.
Dino further said that Indonesia and Norway were hoping to be a pioneer, create a model of partnership for the implementation of REDD Plus that could be followed by other countries.
“We want to be a game changer; pushing forward climate change deal process, which has always met deadlocks, to slowly but surely progressing.”
Yudhoyono’s meeting with Stoltenberg is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, as soon as the Indonesian President landed in Oslo.
The President is also scheduled to attend the Oslo Climate and Forest Conference, which will be attended by representatives of some 50 countries.
Indonesia, Norway to Sign $1b Forestry Deal
Camelia Pasandaran& Fidelis E Satriastanti Jakarta Globe 24 May 10;
Indonesia and Norway are expected to sign a $1 billion agreement on the forestry sector at a two-day meeting in Oslo this week, a senior Indonesian official said on Monday.
The Oslo Climate and Forest Conference, to be held on Wednesday and Thursday, is expected to be attended by at least 10 heads of states from countries with rain forests.
The conference aims to come up with a nonbinding framework on the UN-backed carbon trading mechanism known as REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation). The framework will be called REDD-plus Partnerships.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will co-chair the Oslo meeting.
“The Oslo meeting is a very important step in realizing all the promises that have been made by [developed countries] and to sort out how the financing will be determined,” said Liana Bratasida, the environment minister’s assistant for global environmental affairs and international cooperation.
Liana said $3.5 billion in funding had been promised to rain- forest countries by Norway, Australia, France, Japan, the United States and the European Union.
She also said the REDD-plus Partnerships that were expected to be launched at the meeting in Oslo would represent a major breakthrough in climate change negotiations.
“If this can move forward then it might push other negotiations to move forward also,” Liana said of the new framework.
Environment Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta said the Oslo meeting would benefit Indonesia because Norway’s promised funding would boost optimism that the country could reach its emission cuts targets.
Indonesia last year made a voluntary pledge to cut its emissions by 26 percent by 2020 and by up to 41 percent if assisted with international funding.
“If we get the funding from Norway, we will channel it for activities on peatland areas, considering that these areas have a bigger impact [in the release of more carbon dioxide],” Gusti said.
The discussions at the conference will include involving governors with peatland areas.
Meanwhile, Dino Patti Djalal, Yudhoyono’s spokesman for international affairs, said they expected pledges on the REDD-plus Partnerships would be increased to $5 billion.
“This funding mechanism, what we call interim REDD-plus Partnerships, will effectively and efficiently coordinate the implementation of the forest and climate change program,” the spokesman said.
Dino said the partnerships would be replaced if the climate change negotiations reached an official agreement on an international mechanism related to REDD-plus.
Yudhoyono will also meet the Norwegian prime minister, Jens Stoltenberg to discuss bilateral relations and sign a letter of intent concerning cooperation in forestry issues.
Dino declined to provide more details of the agreement.
Indonesian government to use Norwegian aid to save peatland forests
Antara 25 May 10;
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The government plans to direct climate change aid committment from Norway worth US$1 billion for saving peatland forests in Sumatra, Kalimantan and Papua, Gusti M Hatta said.
"We will direct it for saving peatland forests and it will be discussed with governors. We are made more optimistic by the aid," the environment minister said here on Monday.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono plans to go to Oslo, Norway on May 27 to attend an international conference on climate change and forests to be attended by representatives from dozens of countries.
Along with Norway prime minister, Jens Stoltenberg, the Indonesian president would lead the conference which would discuss mechanism for reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD) in developing countries.
The conference is aimed at facilitating voluntary partnership between advanced countries and developing countries that have tropical forests with regard to implementing the REDD with a total committment worth US$3.5 billion.
Besides discussing further the Copenhagen meeting that pledged US$3.5 billion for developing countries for 2010 to 2011, Indonesia would also sign a letter of intent with Norway for US$1 billion in climate change funding.
"So far many have already committed to extending climate change funds such as from the US, Japan, Australia, Britain, France and Germany but none of it has been realized," he said.
He said his side had already sought confirmation about it from Australia hoping the aid could be enjoyed by people living around the forests up to 50 percent while only 10 percent would go to the central government and the rest to regions possessing forests.
Regarding the new executive secretary for UN Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC), Christiana Figueres, replacing Yvo de Boer, the minister`s expert staff, Liana Bratasida, said that she is quite good.
"Christiana is from Costa Rica and an environment figure from a developing country in Latin America and therefore will understand fully what the developing countries will need," she said.(*)
Indonesia to set up trust fund to reduce emissions
Aditya Suharmoko, The Jakarta Post 26 May 10;
Indonesia plans to set up a multinational trust fund led by the President's trusted man Kuntoro Mangkusubroto as part of a bilateral agreement between Indonesia and Norway to reduce carbon emissions, a minister said.
Under the letter of intent to be signed by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg at the latter's guest house in Oslo, Indonesia will receive US$1 billion in grant to preserve its forests.
The grant will be disbursed in phases under some requirements, including establishment of the trust fund and selection of priority forests, said Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan.
"The Foresty Ministry has offered (forests) in Papua, East Kalimantan, Riau and Jambi. But it will be chosen depending on MRV that will be our responsibility. We will select (which forests) together with Norway," he said.
MRV stands for measurable, reportable and verifiable, meaning every ton of emission cuts will be assessed by independent auditors.
Zulkifli said Riau has approximately 700,000 hectares of forests and Jambi 100,000 hectares. He did not mention the scales in Papua and East Kalimantan.
Zulkifli said Kuntoro, chairman of the Presidential Working Unit for Development Supervision and Control, would lead the trust fund, the members of which may include the World Bank or equivalent institutions.
On board the Garuda Indonesia Airbus A 330 airplane from Jakarta to Oslo, Yudhoyono urged the central and local government to manage grants or funds awarded to Indonesia to preserve its forests appropriately.
"Use the funds appropriately without any misuse. There shouldn't be any cheating," he said.
Zulkifli said Indonesia would try to seek grants from other donors, including South Korea, Japan, the US and Germany.
Such grants are different from the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) Plus scheme, which provides incentives for forestry countries that manage to preserve their forests, as part of the Copenhagen Accord agreed upon by parties to the climate change conference who met in Copenhagen last December.
The incentives are expected to reach $4-5 billion after discussions in Thursday's Oslo Climate and Forest Conference, said presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal.
Thursday will see the conference opening session on "A Global Partnership on Climate and Forests: The Way Ahead", followed by bilateral meetings between heads of state and government.
Yudhoyono is set to attend a dinner Wednesday evening for heads of delegation hosted by Stoltenberg to be attended by representatives of about 50 countries at Holmenkollen Park Hotel Rica, where Yudhoyono stay.
The President's entourage also include First Lady Any Yudhoyono, Environment Minister Gusti M. Hatta, Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, Youth and Sports Minister Andi Mallarangeng, Coordinating Minister for the Economy Hatta Rajasa, Investment Coordinating Board Head Gita Wirjawan.
