Enviro News Asia, Tokyo – In support of accelerating international carbon trading through the Indonesian Carbon Exchange (IDX Carbon), launched on January 20, 2025, Indonesia is offering forest-based carbon credits at the Business Forum on Forest Carbon Trade held at the Indonesian Pavilion during the World Expo Osaka on Friday (May 9, 2025).
The forum is a collaboration between the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Tokyo and the Indonesian Forest Concessionaires Association (APHI), and was attended by stakeholders from both government and private sectors of Indonesia and Japan.
The Consul General of the Republic of Indonesia in Osaka, John Tjahjanto Boestami, emphasized the importance of collaboration between Indonesia and Japan in supporting efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
“Indonesia and Japan share a strong commitment to emission reduction, as reflected in each country’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) document. The Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) signed by both parties serves as a momentum to translate that commitment into tangible mitigation actions,” said John.
Meanwhile, Indroyono Soesilo, Chairman of the Indonesian Forest Concessionaires Association (APHI), highlighted the strategic importance of launching international carbon trading through IDX Carbon as a major milestone for Indonesia in promoting forestry-based carbon credits.
“APHI has proposed the acceleration of international carbon trading to the Government, utilizing carbon credits generated from mitigation actions taken by APHI member forestry enterprises.
Credible, high-integrity, and sustainable forest carbon credits have strong potential to attract investors in financing mitigation efforts, contributing to the achievement of Indonesia’s emission reduction targets,” Indroyono explained.
Indonesia has set an ambitious target for the forestry and land use sector to become a net carbon sink by 2030, through the flagship Forest and Land Use (FOLU) Net Sink 2030 program.
“One of the challenges in implementing the FOLU program is the financing gap, which requires support from various parties, particularly investment from the forestry business sector. International carbon trading is one of the instruments regulated by Indonesia to address this funding gap,” said Agus Justianto, Advisor to the FOLU Net Sink 2030 program.
Regarding the carbon credit certification scheme, a Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) between Indonesia’s Emission Reduction Certificate Scheme (SPEI) and Japan’s Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) marks an initial step toward cross-border recognition of carbon certification.
“Demand for carbon credits through emissions trading under the JCM framework to meet Japan’s NDC targets will begin in 2026. Therefore, the MRA between Japan and Indonesia is a strategic partnership that must be accelerated through cooperation between business players in both countries,” stated Satoru Lino, Director of the Office for the JCM and International Carbon Market, Ministry of the Environment of Japan.
At the Business Forum, APHI and the Japan International Forestry Promotion and Cooperation Center (JIFPRO) signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) regarding the utilization of carbon credits generated by Indonesia’s forestry sector to meet Japan’s carbon market demand.
The forum also witnessed the signing of Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) between Indonesian businesses and Japanese partners related to nature-based solutions projects and biodiversity protection initiatives.
“Concrete steps must be taken immediately to implement the cooperation agreements reached in this forum, and it is expected to open up broader collaboration opportunities in the future,” concluded Indroyono. ***
