Bappenas Underlines Importance of Alternative Financing Schemes for Blue Economy Development

BELITUNG – As the holder of the 2023 ASEAN Chairmanship, Indonesia is leading a number of strategic interventions in the implementation of partnerships between countries, including identifying long-term blue funding.  

Representatives from ASEAN countries who attended Side Event 2 of the ASEAN Blue Economy Forum Working Level Meeting: Enabling Environment for Blue Finance Initiatives in Indonesia, which took place on Monday (3/7) in Belitung. At the Forum, the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas’ Deputy of Maritime Affairs and Natural Resources Vivi Yulaswati explained that Indonesia relies on alternative funding instruments to implement blue economy targets and goals. 

“Currently, alternative financing relies on sovereign bonds. However, it will not be enough to fill the funding shortfall, so we must develop non-sovereign instruments by involving various stakeholders,” Vivi said.  

The Indonesian government has funded 20-25% of the total required blue funding, while the remaining 75 to 80% is expected to be filled by non-government stakeholders such as private parties and others. The Indonesian government opens wide opportunities for related parties to jointly determine the blue economy funding strategy contained in the ASEAN Blue Economy Framework. 

“What is equally important is that we need to increase understanding of the various forms of securities and sukuk, both government and non-government, and the issuance process,” added Vivi. Indonesia will continue to dig further and implement new strategy and policy needs into a new framework for developing the implementation of a blue economy, which is one of the priorities that will ensure the sustainable use of marine resources for Indonesia’s development. 

For Indonesia, blue funding, both from government financing resources and non-government alternatives, is also very crucial to achieve the goals and targets of the Indonesia 2045 Vision and its aim to become a Sovereign, Advanced, and Sustainable Archipelago, as mandated by the 2025-2045 National Long-Term Development Plan. 

“The establishment of blue funding in Indonesia is very important to support the achievement of the Indonesia 2045 Vision, to become a developed country on its 100th anniversary. For this reason, sufficient funding is needed to support its implementation,” concluded Vivi.