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Indonesia, Norway in blame game over collapsed deforestation pact
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A protected area of the Rawa Singkil wildlife reserve, part of the Leuser Ecosystem in Trumon, South Aceh, is burnt on March 3, 2018, in preparation for the development of a palm oil plantation. (AFP/Januar)
I
ndonesia and Norway are at odds over which country is responsible for the collapse of an agreement to reduce carbon emissions from deforestation.
Indonesia ended the decade-long pact on Friday, citing Norway's failure to pay US$56 million in grant money, but Norwegian officials indicated that the country had been willing to pay. The funds were part of a $1 billion grant promised by Norway under the REDD+ scheme if Indonesia was able to limit its emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.
The Foreign Ministry announced the termination of the agreement on Friday night after notifying the Norwegian Embassy in Jakarta. The ministry said the decision had been made after a series of inter-ministerial consultations.
Last year, the two countries announced that Indonesia was eligible for the $56 million grant in the first payment under the scheme. The figure was based on a Norwegian assessment that found that Indonesia had prevented the release of 11.2 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) into the atmosphere from 2016 to 2017, more than the 4.8 million tons initially reported by Indonesia. The money was to be paid in installments.
“But there seems to be no goodwill from the Norwegian government as we have not received a single cent from this agreement,” Deputy Environment and Forestry Minister Alue Dohong told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.
He said Norway had set additional requirements that had not been established in the agreement before they would wire the money and even after they had verified the emissions that Indonesia had prevented. These included requests for Indonesia to show documentation on how the money would be spent and other operational details.
Read also: Indonesia to receive $56 million from Norway for reducing emissions
