Indonesia Vice President Boediono Meets GGGI Council

JAKARTA, Indonesia, Sept.17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Chairman of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) Council Lars Lokke Rasmussen, GGGI Council Member Indonesia Vice Minister of National Development Planning Lukita Dinarsyah Tuwo, GGGI Director-General Howard Bamsey, Country Representative for GGGI Indonesia Anna van Paddenburg and Danish Ambassador to Indonesia Martin Bille Hermann met with Indonesian Vice-President Boediono accompanied by Head of Presidential Unit for Development Monitoring and Oversight (UKP4), Kuntoro Mangkusubroto and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Wardana to discuss Indonesia's policies and progress with green growth.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130917/HK81031 )

The high-level meeting saw GGGI's Council underline its support for President Yudhoyono's aim of achieving green growth in Indonesia in the context of sustainable development. Both developing and developed country members of the GGGI Council encouraged continued South -South cooperation on green growth.

The Chairman of the Council, Director-General Bamsey, and other members of GGGI's leadership were in Indonesia to make initial plans for the long-term strategy of the organization from 2015. During this visit, the Council members also conducted field visits in the country and met with key government and business leaders.

Indonesia has played a crucial role in GGGI's development – both as a founding member of the organization and partner for multiple, expansive national and regional green growth projects.

Chairman Rasmussen congratulated President Yudhoyono's government on its achievements related to green growth, including placing green growth prominently on the national agenda, promoting laws and regulations designed to advance the development of green industries, and establishing the REDD+ Agency earlier this month as a means to meeting Indonesia's commitment to reduce green house gas emissions by up to 41 percent by 2020.

Many developing countries are leading the way towards new models of inclusive growth that embrace their citizens' aspirations for a better life for themselves, their families and their communities - without compromising long term environmental sustainability. Indonesia has helped show that progress towards these new development models is possible.

GGGI's program in Indonesia was also discussed at length. The Government of Indonesia (GOI)–GGGI Green Growth Program was officially launched by Minister of National Development Planning (Bappenas) Armida Alishjabana and Director-General Howard Bamsey on June 18 2013, following several years of GGGI work in the provinces of East and Central Kalimantan.

The GOI-GGGI Green Growth Program includes mainstreaming green growth in economic and development planning, green technology transfer and driving green capital investment, REDD+, and continued provincial support in East and Central Kalimantan.

"Since the official launch of the GOI-GGGI Green Growth Program, the pace of our engagement with Indonesian institutions and partners has really quickened, key relationships are being built and strengthened, and we are beginning to show real results. This is in large part due to the enthusiastic engagement of the Indonesian government and President Yudhoyono's commitment to green growth," said Director-General Bamsey.

Vice President Boediono asked whether GGGI planned to establish an office in Indonesia. GGGI Country Representative for Indonesia, Anna van Paddenburg responded that GGGI works in a unique way. "We dont' intend to open a seaprate office in Indoensia. The way we work is by placing our staff within the government agencies we collaborate with."

"It was a true pleasure to kick-start the discussion on the long-term strategy of GGGI and the broad priorities from 2015 at the GGGI Council Strategy workshop in Indonesia. I very much enjoyed taking stock of GGGI's work in Indonesia. We received valuable feedback on GGGI's activities. I very much look forward to continuing GGGI's relationship with Indonesia, which is one of the absolute key members of the organization" said Chairman Rasmussen.

About GGGI

GGGI is an international organization dedicated to developing and diffusing a new paradigm of economic growth – green growth – which simultaneously balances economic performance and environmental sustainability. Headquartered in Seoul and founded in June 2010, GGGI works in long-term partnership with developing and emerging economies through rigorous green growth planning, research and public-private cooperation. In June 2012, 18 nations signed the GGGI Establishment Agreement, which formally defines and establishes the organization as international intergovernmental organization, the world's only international organization dedicated solely to green growth.

GGGI is GoI's key partner in the Green Growth program in Indonesia. GGGI mobilizes technical support, as well as support capacity building in the design and implementation which results in Green Growth. The Green Growth program has three program components -- to incorporate green growth in Indonesia's economic and development planning, to direct current funding from Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) to catalyzothere Green Growth, and to support the development of green growth strategies with two provincial governments: Central Kalimantan and East Kalimantan.