Rich Nations Target $20 Billion to Wean Indonesia Off Coal

Indonesia has at times questioned climate deals, including a 2021 agreement to end deforestation by 2030 it signed, warning it could hinder the country’s economic development.

But despite the new incentives, experts cautioned that a lot of work remained for Indonesia to meet the demands of the partnership.

“It’s a work in progress. But Indonesia has gotten to enough comfort level with the scale of finance that they want to go ahead with it. There will be a lot of follow up work,” said Friederike Roder, senior director for EU and G20 at NGO Global Citizen.

But he warned: “There is concern that the finance is not adequate for the total transformation that is needed”.

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Indonesian officials welcomed the pact despite the worries.

The deal shows “we can create a more sustainable world for our grandchildren, our citizens, and the future generation,” Indonesia's coordinating minister of maritime and investment affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan told a press conference.

The donor pledge announced on Tuesday was part of a slew of projects announced under an infrastructure partnership -- aimed as a counter-balance to China’s Belt and Road Initiative -- to provide support to developing nations.

They ranged from funding for digital projects in the Pacific to investment in the sustainable mining of nickel and cobalt in Brazil and powering solar projects in Honduras.

Source: Agence France-Presse