Indonesia's Sustainable Development Report

Despite being delayed by the pandemic, Indonesia's SDGs performance is much better than the world average. Of course you shouldn't be complacent because there is still a lot of homework to achieve the SDGs in order to develop the country.

The following article was translated using both Microsoft Azure Open AI and Google Translation AI. The original article can be found in Rapor Pembangunan Berkelanjutan Indonesia

KOMPAS/HERYUNANTO

Illustration

The world is devastated. At the SDGs Summit in the series of the 2023 UN General Assembly in New York, United States, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres reminded that only 15 percent of the Sustainable Development Goals targets were on track (Kompas, 20/9/2023) .

Previously, in March 2023, at the Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) in Bangkok, Thailand, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) also stated that the Asia-Pacific region is 35 years behind in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) or Sustainable Development Goals (TPB). This means that the SDGs target, which is targeted to be achieved in 2030, may only be achieved in 42 years, namely in 2065.

What about Indonesia?

At a global level, the Sustainable Development Report 2023 shows that Indonesia is ranked 75th in the world, a significant increase compared to four years ago when it was ranked 102. Indonesia's SDGs index score increased from 64.2 in 2019 to 70.2 in 2023 (SDSN).

At the national level, the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas reports that the achievement of National SDGs in 2023 shows that 76 percent of SDGs indicators in Indonesia have been achieved and experienced progress, consisting of 60 percent of targets achieved and 16 percent will be achieved.

Despite being delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Indonesia's SDGs achievement performance is much better than the world average. Of course, we cannot be complacent with these proud and uplifting achievements because there is still a lot of work to be done in pursuing SDGs achievements in order to build our beloved country.

Despite being delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Indonesia's SDGs achievement performance is much better than the world average.

Indonesia's Commitment

At the global level, the implementation of SDGs is voluntary. There is no coercion and there are no sanctions or embargoes if a UN member state does not carry out SDGs. However, Indonesia emphasizes that the implementation of SDGs in the country is mandatory because SDGs are in line with the constitutional mandate to build and prosper the nation.

Indonesia has declared its commitment to implement and achieve the SDGs since September 2015.

As the SDGs coordinator, the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas has executed and aligned the SDGs with President of Indonesia Joko Widodo's Nawacita as the national development vision formulated in the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) 2015-2019 and 2020-2024, and detailed in the government's annual work plan, including accompanying budget documents.

President Regulation Number 59 of 2017 which was updated in President Regulation Number 111 of 2022 concerning the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goals mandates the preparation and determination of the National Roadmap and Action Plan.

In addition, this presidential regulation also coordinates the facilitation and assistance in the compilation of the five-year Regional SDGs Action Plan, requiring coordination in monitoring, evaluation, and reporting of SDGs achievements at the national and regional levels, as well as coordinating funding sources from the government and other legitimate and non-binding sources.

With the commitment and hard work that has been done, what has Indonesia achieved in SDGs since 2016?

Infographic of Indonesia's SDGs Rankings and Index Scores

Achievement of four pillars

The implementation of SDGs, which consists of 17 goals, 169 targets, and 289 indicators, is coordinated into four pillars, namely Social Development, Economic Development, Environmental Development, and Legal and Governance Development.

Several indicators of the Social Development Pillar, including Goals 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, have been achieved or experienced progress. For example, the decrease in the population below the national poverty line, from 10.14 percent in March 2021 to 9.36 percent in March 2023.

In addition, there has been an increase in the added value of agriculture, the coverage of the National Health Insurance, organized learning levels (one year before elementary school), and a decrease in the proportion of women aged 20-24 who marry or live together before the age of 18.

The Pillars of Economic Development encompass Goals 7, 8, 9, 10, and 17. The growth of Indonesia's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita has increased, from 2.52 percent in 2021 to 4.13 percent in 2022.

Other achieved indicators include the increase of installed capacity of renewable energy power plants, reduction of open unemployment rate by gender and age group, increase in the number of passengers and goods using trains, as well as an increase in per capita value added in the manufacturing sector industry.

However, inequality still remains high, as seen from the gini ratio which reached 0.381 in 2022, although the proportion of the population (based on gender and disability status) living below 50 percent of the median income has decreased.

The proportion of government income and the tax ratio to GDP continue to improve post-pandemic, reaching 13.41 percent in 2022. The number of activities and funding for the South-South Triangular Cooperation has increased post-pandemic, the proportion of remittance volume to GDP has decreased, and the use of metadata by ministries/agencies/institutions/regions has increased.

The Pillar of Environmental Development includes Goals 6, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15, indicating an increase in the number of protected fishermen in 2022, recorded at 308,858 people, up from 76,597 in 2021. There is also an increase in the percentage of liquid waste processed safely, an increase in the amount of recycled waste, an increase in the amount of deep-sea fish caught within biologically-safe limits, and a potential decrease in greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, the total area of marine conservation zones has increased, the number of forest management units categorized as advanced has increased, and the number of cases related to hunting or illegal trading has decreased.

Infographic of Indonesia's SDGs Target Achievement in 2023

The Pillar of Legal and Governance Development that specifically handles Goal 16 and also coordinates Goal 17 notes progress in several sectors. The possession of birth certificates for Indonesian children continues to increase although it has not yet reached the target. The Anti-Corruption Behavior Index continues to improve, indicating that society is increasingly behaving in an anti-corruption manner.

The level of press freedom in Indonesia is currently in a "fairly free" position. More and more poor citizens are receiving legal assistance for litigation and non-litigation cases, and Indonesia's Justice Access Index is in the "fairly" category. Although most of the target indicators have been achieved, Indonesia still needs to consider efforts to reach the remaining 52 indicators.

Future challenges

After the Covid-19 pandemic, Indonesia still faces several challenges in pursuing the SDG targets, such as climate change, food security, energy, water, and pollution, as well as increasing financing needs. The revised roadmap for SDGs in Indonesia shows an increase in financing needs to achieve SDGs by 2030, from 1 trillion US dollars to 1.7 trillion US dollars. Please note: The word "SDGs" should not be translated as it is a forbidden word.

Achieving the SDGs targets requires sustainable cooperation from all parties, including the government and stakeholders. This cooperation must also be supported by various innovative funding instruments involving the private sector, philanthropy, and investors in achieving development transformation. The UN urges all member countries to pursue as many missed SDG targets as possible through development transformation.

The achievement of SDGs is expected to bring about a better world for future generations whose earth we are currently borrowing.

Every leader in Indonesia should prioritize the implementation of SDGs as a cornerstone to realize the constitutional mandate of improving the welfare of the people and achieving independence aspirations.

Also read: Calls for UN Reform are Increasingly Strong

Also read: Indonesia's SDGs Achievement in 2022 is Low

Suharso Monoarfa Minister of National Development Planning/Head of Bappenas

BIRO PERS SEKRETARIAT PRESIDEN - KRIS

Suharso Monoarfa