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The more ambitious climate action the better for Indonesia’s economy
Indonesia cannot afford to be a laggard on climate action. We must move faster.
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President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo (President Secretariat/BPMI Setpres/Lukas)
I
ndonesia, like many other economies across the world, is gradually recovering from multiple waves of COVID-19 infection. Meanwhile, we are at a pivotal juncture in dealing with climate change, as the cost of climate impacts begins to mount and our window for action narrows.
Climate change has many dangerous implications for Indonesia. Indonesia’s gross domestic product (GDP) could shrink by 16.7 to 30.2 percent because of the impacts of climate change if the world is 2 to 2.6 degrees Celsius warmer by mid-century, according to recent analysis by the insurer Swiss Re. Indonesia also ranks as the most vulnerable to climate change impacts among the 48 countries analyzed.
Yet, climate action is also a huge opportunity. With system-changing green interventions in key economic systems, Indonesia could reach net-zero emissions by as early as 2045, while achieving strong, resilient growth.
Over the summer, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published a landmark new report showing that this decade is our last chance to take action to limit a global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees and avoid severe climate disruptions that will throw the world’s economy and natural systems into chaos. To succeed, we must slash emissions in the 2020s and reach net-zero by mid-century.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the report a “code red for humanity”, but unfortunately the warning fell on deaf ears as evident in the absence of a unified commitment among nations during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), which ended last Friday.
In fact, we are seeing the impacts of climate change already. Jakarta, the world’s fastest-sinking city, consistently ranks among the world's worst cities for air pollution. In April, tropical cyclone Seroja, one of the most powerful ever to hit Indonesia, killed 181 people. It is clear that business as usual is not an option.
Global leaders, brought together under the Paris Agreement, have responded. At the 76th session of the UN General Assembly in September, President Xi Jinping stated that China would no longer build coal-fired power projects abroad. This followed similar announcements from Japan, South Korea and the rest of the Group of 7, representing a historic turning point away from coal. Investors and markets are also shifting away from risky high-carbon infrastructure
