Enviro News Asia, Jakarta – The Indonesian government, in collaboration with businesses, academia, research institutions, and civil society organizations, reinforced cross-sector collaboration to position biodiversity conservation as a key pillar of the country’s sustainable economic growth strategy through the Indonesia Biodiversity Business Forum.
The forum highlighted the development of biodiversity credits, the strengthening of the Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) mechanism, and multi-stakeholder collaboration as strategic measures to ensure that biodiversity conservation becomes both a shared responsibility and a long-term investment for national development and community welfare.
Minister of Environment and Head of the Environmental Control Agency, Moh. Jumhur Hidayat, said carbon credits and biodiversity credits should be viewed as complementary instruments that connect environmental protection with economic development.
He emphasized that climate change and biodiversity are closely interconnected, noting that environmental degradation caused by climate change directly threatens biodiversity. Therefore, both agendas must advance together to achieve sustainable development.
According to the minister, the carbon market offers multiple benefits, including ecosystem restoration, the creation of green jobs, and new economic opportunities for local communities and businesses. He cited the “avoiding” scheme as an example, under which concession holders voluntarily refrain from exploiting forest resources despite having legal rights to do so. Such conservation efforts, he said, can generate carbon credits that provide financial incentives while protecting the environment.
Jumhur added that Indonesia’s growing carbon economy has attracted strong interest from international investors. However, he stressed that the government remains committed to safeguarding national interests to ensure Indonesia plays a leading role in the global carbon market rather than becoming merely an object of carbon trading.
He also noted that achieving Indonesia’s Enhanced Nationally Determined Contribution (E-NDC) emissions reduction target will require substantial climate financing, making collaboration between the government and the private sector essential through both compliance and voluntary carbon market mechanisms.
Beyond the forestry sector, the minister said significant opportunities also exist in industrial sectors, including methane emission reduction projects in Indonesia’s palm oil industry, which could be converted into carbon credits.
The government reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening environmental-based economic policies so that Indonesia’s rich biodiversity can generate long-term economic value while supporting environmental conservation and sustainable national development. (Source : MUI)
