28 March 2022 | The GCoM Southeast Asia (SEA) Secretariat and particular signatories of GCoM in SEA participated in the recent Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) side event with the theme “Means to Reach the Climate and SDGs Ambition: Financing Options, Research, and Technologies to Advancing Local Governments in Turning Commitments into Reality”.
The event was organised by the Ministry of National Development Planning of the Republic of Indonesia (Bappenas) and the United Cities and Local Governments Asia Pacific (UCLG ASPAC), the host of Secretariats of GCoM SEA and ASEAN Mayors Forum (AMF). The Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) is an annual and inclusive intergovernmental forum and a regional platform for supporting countries in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development while serving as a regional preparatory meeting for the high-level political forum.
The event was started with remarks from Dr. Arifin Rudiyanto, the Acting Deputy Minister for Maritime and Natural Resources of Bappenas. He highlighted that Indonesia has mainstreamed the SDGs in the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) 2020-2024 document. Speaking of climate change impacts, in particular, Dr. Arifin said, “Indonesia government commits to strengthening the low carbon development and climate resilience as a national priority programme.” As Indonesia holds the G20 presidency this year, he also mentioned that Indonesia will emphasise the commitments of all countries to finance the global emission reduction projects for a better world.
Moderating the first session on “Regional Perspective on Climate Financing Landscape for Local Governments Post Pandemic” was Dr. Teguh Sambodo (Director for Industry, Tourism, and Creative Economy of Bappenas). Dr. Mahesti Okitasari (United Nations University – Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability or UNU-IAS) delivered the results of joint research between UNU-IAS and UCLG ASPAC on the progress of SDGs localisation and local responses to COVID-19 in Southeast Asian countries.
Representing the GCoM SEA Secretariat, Ms. Desra Hilda Defriana presented climate finance for cities and local governments in the context of GCoM Southeast Asia. In this regard, the GCoM SEA Secretariat supports the cities and local governments in the implementation of the project from climate action plan through Project Preparation Facilities (PPFs) which are used as means of developing bankable, investment-ready projects. At the event, the GCoM SEA Secretariat shared more details of two PPFs that are GCoM partners namely City Climate Finance Gap Fund (or simply Gap Fund) and Transformative Action Program (TAP), and provided information on successful cities and local governments getting financed by Gap Fund and cities and local governments applying TAP. In addition, the GCoM SEA Secretariat optimally used the event to promote the GCoM as the global alliance of cities and local governments working to achieve a climate-resilient future.
Prof. Wiwandari Handayani (University of Diponegoro) shared Semarang City’s experience in financing urban climate resilience. Semarang has come a long way from business as usual (BaU) to transformative adaptation, which includes making some bankable interventions and collaborating for more proactive climate solutions. As of now, Semarang has received various support from the national government and international institutions for programme and project implementation..
Following the presentations from three speakers, the event proceeded to a panel discussion on the topic “Local Governments as Climate Champions: Best Practices from Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia.”
Speaking on behalf of Hat Yai (Thailand), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Wichai Kanchanasuwan mentioned that Hat Yai is moving towards a green city, low-carbon city, disaster-resilient city, and smart city by 2030. He also shared the city’s 2019 greenhouse gas inventory in three sectors, namely stationary energy, transportation, and waste. Finally, he also highlighted the importance of establishing and maintaining collaboration with other agencies, such as international organisations, non-governmental organisations, and universities.
Representing Kuala Lumpur was the mayor himself, Datuk Seri Mahadi bin Che Ngah. He stated that, as the capital city, Kuala Lumpur fully supports Malaysia’s commitment to be a carbon-neutral country by 2050. Through its vision, “Creating a sustainable, liveable, resilient, safe, inclusive, and happy city for all,” Kuala Lumpur has incorporated and aligned action plans with the SDGs. While some challenges remain, the city has actively taken some meaningful approaches, like community buy-in programmes and amendments to local by-laws. He concluded his presentation with a powerful tone, “I would like to emphasise that we are firm in our commitment to mitigate climate change for the sustainability of Kuala Lumpur.”
Indonesia was represented by two cities: Jakarta and Samarinda. Mr. Nasruddin Djoko Surjono, the Head of the Planning dan Development Agency of Jakarta Provincial Government, explained that Jakarta’s position as the centre of government and economy in Indonesia as well as the biggest metropolitan in Southeast Asia has made Jakarta prone to climate change impacts. Therefore, the capital city has established a set of strategies and made some efforts in response to climate change. One of the noticeable efforts in the transportation and mobility sector is Jakarta won the Sustainable Transportation Award in 2021.
After the panelists have delivered their presentations, two discussants from the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (MoEF) and the Ministry of Finance (MoF) provided their responses to the presentations. The overall event was concluded by closing remarks from UCLG ASPAC Secretary-General Dr. Bernadia Irawati Tjandradewi. She highlighted the importance of creating an enabling environment and building capacities for long-term implementation and helping to secure integrated and sustainable financing to implement climate actions.
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Written and reviewed by: Rona Ikram Putri
