Knowing that blue carbon ecosystems, including mangroves, seagrass meadows and saltmarshes are capable of sequestering and storing more carbon than terrestrial forests, they have attracted global attention, notably in climate change mitigation and adaptation. As home of around 17% of global blue carbon stock, Indonesia has a great opportunity to conduct international trading of carbon credits from its coastal ecosystems.

To implement the Paris Agreement, Indonesia has committed to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as outlined in its nationally determined contribution (NDC). Presidential Regulation No. 98/2021 on Implementation of Carbon Economic Value (NEK) was enacted to help the country achieve its emissions reduction targets. This was followed by Minister of Environment and Forestry Regulation No. 21/2022 on Technical Guidelines for Indonesia Emissions Reduction Certification (SPEI). In addition, the Government of Indonesia has launched the Indonesia Carbon Exchange (IDXCarbon) to provide markets for trading of carbon credits to accelerate carbon emission reduction, and achieve net-zero emissions by 2060 or earlier.

Stakeholders, including non-state actors, private sector, business and coastal communities, are interested in taking the opportunities to invest and develop blue carbon projects in Indonesia – the largest host of mangroves in the world. However, they have yet to understand how SPEI, NEK and IDXCarbon will be operationalized and enable them to participate in blue carbon projects. This will eventually speed up the process to achieve country’s net zero emissions (NZE) in 2060 or earlier.