The meeting held in ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) office on 15 September 2023 aimed to exchange information and knowledge on energy and climate topics in ASEAN and provide essential context for the upcoming UNEP-Copenhagen Climate Centre Project namely Socially Inclusive Sustainable Energy Transitions (SISET) within Indonesian provinces. 

• Lakshmi Bhamidipati and Marie Blanche from UNEP-Copenhagen Climate Centre has visited ACE and discussed with ACCEPT II teams who are Muhammad Shidiq, Aldilla Noor Rakhiemah, Indira Pradnyaswari, Bianca Natasha Prasetya, and Nuriza Zharifah Arsyanti. 
• The discussion underscored the importance of a bottom-up approach, the significance of local context, and the need for inclusive and sustainable strategies in addressing climate change challenges at both regional and national levels. 

UNEP-Copenhagen Climate Centre highlighted the “Socially Inclusive Sustainable Energy Transition for Indonesian Provinces UNEP-Copenhagen Climate Centre Project” (SISET UNEP-CCC Project). This ambitious initiative spans from 2023 to 2025 and has a strong regional focus, concentrating on the provinces of West Java and East or West Nusa Tenggara. The collaboration, set to be jointly implemented through an Indonesian partner, reflects a comprehensive approach aimed at making a tangible impact on the ground. The project’s scope has been broadened to encompass not only technical and financial aspects but also the crucial ground-level implementation, recognizing the significance of subsidies in the process. SISET’s dimensions prioritize a people-centered transition, encompassing SMEs and the private sector, gender participation to enhance equality, and consideration of the local context. The approach revolves around analyzing barriers, gaps, & needs, developing roadmaps and frameworks, and identifying opportunities. This holistic strategy promises a well-rounded and effective approach to sustainable energy transition.  

The discussion continued with insights from the ACCEPT II team on the Indonesian local context. Shidiq mentioned the need to involve its government and local partner for more comprehensive analysis. Indira highlighted the challenges specific to West Java and Nusa Tenggara, emphasizing the importance of community participation and aligning efforts with its government priorities.  The need for technical expertise and budget allocations at the provincial level presented an opportunity for UNEP to step in. Shidiq also discussed the various modeling approaches used at the national and provincial levels, highlighting ACCEPT II’s opportunities for working at the province and city levels.  

During the meeting, Lakshmi delved into a critical aspect about the competitive advantage of cross-country strategies. Shidiq elaborated on ACCEPT II’s intentions to harness the power of synchronization, emphasizing the aligning effort from the country level to the broader regional context. This would entail a multifaceted approach by robust research, comprehensive analysis, and deliberate collaboration.  

Aldilla brought up the successful collaboration ACCEPT II has done with various organizations and its ongoing effort to harmonize and bridge silos within ASEAN. Additionally, she discussed important initiatives to maintain partnerships including organized Workshop on Carbon Pricing Implementation in ASEAN, High-Level Policy Dialogue on Sustainable Energy Financing, and upcoming Singapore International Energy Week (SIEW) that ACCEPT II is being co-organized on session of sustainable financing for decarbonization.  

The discussion concluded that a collaborative effort between ACCEPT II and the UNEP-Copenhagen Climate Centre in advancing sustainable energy transition and net zero emission is open up and can be started at the National level. To bring it up to the regional level, there should be a continuation from the national successful implementation by replicating to other ASEAN Member States (AMS). In addition, there are more potential areas for collaboration between the parties in the future since the parties are working in similar areas in energy and climate topics.

Further details about ACCEPT II can be found at https://accept.aseanenergy.org/.  

We welcome any future collaboration, please feel free to contact us at [email protected]