Indonesia and Australia acknowledge that reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a global challenge. We share ambition to address this challenge through cooperation and collaboration to develop, finance, deploy, and share affordable low emissions technologies and support infrastructure that will assist our respective transition to lower emission economies and maintain and enhance our energy security. By doing so, we will support the ongoing development of the region, help build inclusive and resilient renewable energy supply chains and economies, and create sustainable jobs and drive green investment.
Indonesia and Australia recognise the positive outcomes that can be achieved under the pillars of our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) and our bilateral economic and development cooperation architecture, including the landmark Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA), to support green economy objectives and energy transition in both countries. We also recognise opportunities for collaboration in the regional context, including with ASEAN and through regional free trade agreements.
We seek to deepen and broaden our engagement on trade and investment, improving mechanisms and capabilities that underpin a green economy transition including in regional energy trade and carbon markets, accessible green finance, and enhanced institutional and private sector collaboration.
We are committed to strengthening existing collaborations on climate and energy transition, climate finance, environmental governance and resource management, biodiversity protection, water conservation, and disaster risk reduction and resilience. We are committed to promoting and upholding gender and social inclusion, including youth participation in climate action, in support of equitable and sustainable regional development.
Engagement under the auspices of the annual Economic, Trade and Investment Ministers' meeting, the forthcoming inaugural Energy Ministers' Meeting and other regular bilateral mechanisms will support progress on a green economy and energy transition agenda, including the areas of focus outlined below.
Opportunities to enhance cooperation include:
Economic and Development Partnership
- Emphasise the essential role of trade and investment in the green economy, including to tackle the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and to enable a strong economic recovery for both countries.
- Build stronger and more sustainable economic growth in the region, by facilitating the flow of goods and services, securing resilient supply chains, maintaining support for fiscal policy actions and ensuring strong macroeconomic fundamentals and a predictable business environment that promotes transition towards green and circular economies.
- Work through existing and emerging green finance mechanisms to support affordable low emissions technology projects that enhance greenhouse gas emissions reduction (including Carbon Capture and Storage/Carbon Capture, Utilisation, and Storage (CCS/CCUS)), clean energy (such as clean hydrogen and ammonia), energy efficiency, environmental sustainability and related green economy initiatives to become commercially viable.
- Leverage collaborations on potential carbon offset projects and capacity building to encourage greater private sector investment in climate action in Indonesia.
- Utilise the IA-CEPA ECP Katalis program to develop Indonesia-Australia electric vehicle business partnerships, including support to develop the enabling critical minerals manufacturing sector, towards securing future challenges on clean energy transitions and providing value added industries and jobs growth.
- Promote collaboration between Australian and Indonesian research institutions and industry partners to support both countries' energy transition with practical, cost-effective solutions.
Securing Our and the Region's Shared Interests
- Promote innovative solutions for green economy challenges, including by working together to build and support resilient and reliable low emissions energy supply chains, by developing a mechanism to facilitate green and sustainable technology transfer, and by addressing both traditional and new challenges posed by digitalisation of green economies.
- Strengthen green economy outcomes that support resilient, low carbon infrastructure and transportation links, including via the Indonesia Australia Partnership for Infrastructure (KIAT), regional program Partnerships for Infrastructure (P4I) and through ASEAN-Australia development programs that are inclusive and mutually beneficial.
- Provide ongoing support for emerging private sector initiatives, including in renewable electricity generation production and transmission, and cross border trade, to help drive energy transition and offer low emissions energy to industries and supply chains in the region.
Maritime Trade and Sustainable Development
- Promote the sustainable development of the blue economy based on spatial planning, as well as develop marine science and technology collaboration to support green and blue economies.
- Explore possibilities to strengthen climate resilience, including through nature-based solutions or ecosystem-based approaches to climate change, reducing economic loss due to climate impacts in agriculture, health, water, marine and coastal sectors, and collaborating to ensure readiness and to reduce risks around climate and non-climate related disasters.
- Continue our work together on emissions reduction measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) standards, particularly for nature-based solutions or ecosystem-based approaches such as blue carbon.
- Address externalities and negative environmental impacts on ocean systems, including through the low carbon development and climate resilience strategies to tackle negative impacts of climate change, ensure the health, productivity and resilience of the ocean, and maintain sustainability of marine resources and the environment and coastal communities.
- Promote cooperation on marine sustainability and blue economy development, protection and conservation of the marine and coastal environment including biodiversity, ecosystems and resources, as well as protecting people who depend on the ocean for their livelihoods from harmful activities and other threats, such as land-based and sea-based pollution, and taking action against cases of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, through multi-stakeholder dialogue in both bilateral and regional fora.
Contributing to Indo-Pacific Stability and Prosperity/ Regional and Multilateral Contexts
- Collaboration on green economy and sustainable recovery issues through multilateral and regional fora, including ASEAN-led forums, the East Asia Summit, and through enhanced ASEAN-Australia cooperation.
- Taking note of the development of Australia's new Indo-Pacific Carbon Offset Scheme, including identifying opportunities to pilot carbon offset projects that demonstrate mutual commitment to high-integrity carbon trading in the region.
- Work together, and with other countries, and in multilateral contexts, including to ensure that policies and measures relating to trade, investment and the environment are consistent with WTO commitments and the other relevant treaty commitments of the respective parties concerned.
Australia expresses its support for Indonesia's G20 Presidency in 2022 and the theme - "Recover Together, Recover Stronger". Australia supports Indonesia's efforts to focus on climate change as a cross-cutting theme under its five priorities of promoting productivity, increasing resilience and stability, ensuring sustainable and inclusive growth, creating enabling environment and partnership and forging a stronger collective global leadership.
Rome
30 October 2021
