Indonesia Pushes Global Collaboration for Sustainable Ocean Development

Bali, INTI - Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Luhut B. Pandjaitan, was the keynote speaker at The Global Dialogue On Sustainable Ocean Development and attended the launch of Ocean Accounts Indonesia in Sanur, Bali, on Friday (5-7-2024). In a press conference, Minister Luhut expressed his appreciation to the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries for successfully organizing the Global Dialogue attended by several island nations.

"It is very important for us to unify this effort as it is part of the global south collaboration," he stated.

In his presentation, Minister Luhut explained that Indonesia is the largest archipelago country in the world with vast maritime resources, a strategic location, and the fourth-largest population in the world.

"Indonesia has mega biodiversity with approximately 8,500 marine biota, a sustainable fishery production potential of 12 million tons per year, a potential marine fishery production of over 50 million tons per year, submarine cables spanning 115,000 km supporting national and global digitization flows, as well as blue carbon and renewable energy potential," he elaborated.

However, most of Indonesia's seas are currently unexplored. This drives Indonesia to start collaborating with international partners to explore and understand more about our oceans. Together with BRIN, IDSSE, and OceanX, Indonesia is trying to uncover new insights by exploring the deep sea and understanding climate change, Minister Luhut continued.

Currently, the contribution of the maritime industry is still very low (estimates from BPS and the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries). Therefore, it is necessary to explore and harvest maritime resources sustainably, especially through the blue economy approach.

"Indonesia is committed to taking concrete actions to protect our seas, through large-scale seaweed farming with mechanization and technology, a 600,000-hectare mangrove rehabilitation program, and handling plastic waste in the sea with a target of 70% reduction by the end of 2025," he stated.

The integrated Blue Halo S and comprehensive approach to managing marine resource conservation and fishery restoration projects to mitigate coral bleaching and mangroves have been implemented by Indonesia. This includes the launch of Ocean Accounts, which allows us to measure the sea based on its monetary value from marine ecosystems, services, and degradation trends.

"Indonesia is taking pioneering steps toward sustainable management through Ocean Accounting," said Minister Luhut.

Indonesia has also initiated several global and national platforms for sustainable oceans and the blue economy, bringing together multiple stakeholders such as the G20 Bali Global Blended Finance, National Blue Agenda Actions Partnership (NBAAP), Archipelagic and Island States Forum (AIS Forum), and Ocean 20 (O20), which now have engagement in the G20.

"This requires international collaborative efforts. Our oceans are not just our responsibility; they are our lifeline. Now is the time to act. Our legacy can be resilience, responsibility, and commitment to nurturing our oceans for our nation, the world, and future generations," concluded Minister Luhut.