By: Rivka Mayangsari*)
Indonesia has been successful as the organizer of the implementation of the ASEAN 2023 Summit in Jakarta. This marks the expertise of Indonesian diplomacy in leading ASEAN, because of the agility of diplomats who negotiate with the leaders of the big countries present. Indonesia has been so flexible and dynamics implementing diplomacy as the main instrument of fostering international relations. This Summit is also at the same time a high -level diplomacy for direct communication between country leaders. This is very important in preventing large -scale conflicts, promoting dialogue, and improving bilateral relations.
The Indonesian government together with the Government of the Republic of Madagascar, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Indonesia and the Archipelagic and Island States (AIS) Secretariat have completed the 8th Official/Senior Official Meeting (SOM) meeting in Antananarivo, Madagaskar. For the next meeting, the Archipelagic and Island States (AIS) Forum Archipelagic High Level Conference (AIS) will be held in Bali on 11 October 2023. Project Coordinator of the Secretariat of AIS Forum, Riny Modaso said that the implementation of the Summit would later become a strategic platform to strengthen the concrete program of AIS Forum in various fields in all island countries and islands.
In short, the Archipelagic and Island States (AIS) Forum is a concrete cooperation platform formed to accommodate island and archipelago countries around the world to jointly overcome the challenges and problems faced, especially in the marine development sector. AIS Forum is an island and island state formed since 2018, through the Manado Joint Declaration, on the initiative of Indonesia in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Since it was formed four years ago, AIS forum regularly holds a Senior Official Meeting (SOM) meeting and a meeting of Ministerial Meeting (MM) every year. This forum involves the participation of 51 island and islands, regardless of the area, size, or level of development.
The main purpose of AIS Forum is to strengthen collaboration in overcoming global problems with four main areas namely mitigation and adaptation of climate change, blue economy, handling of plastic waste in the sea, and good maritime governance. This includes reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing resistance to climate change. In addition, the AIS Forum is trying to promote the sustainability of the blue economy. In this framework, this forum encourages the use of sustainable economic potential associated with marine resources. Some sectors that are focused are tourism, renewable energy, aquaculture, and marine industry.
Furthermore, AIS forum aims to overcome the problem of marine plastic debris or sea plastic waste. This forum seeks to reduce and prevent plastic pollution at sea by raising awareness, reducing the use of disposable plastic, and managing plastic waste wisely. Through cooperation between participating countries, AIS Forum is expected to strengthen good marine governance, sustainable management of marine areas, and managing fair and sustainable marine resources. Later, in addition to these four cooperation areas, AIS Forum also opened the door for cooperation with platforms and other organizations to enrich perspectives and achieve broader global goals. This forum also pays special attention to the empowerment of youth and coastal communities through ideas, creativity, and innovative solutions.
In addition, Plt. Assistant Deputy (ASDEP) of Maritime Delimitation Zones and Border Areas, Sora Lokita (OKI) also said that Indonesia has an important and strategic role in the AIS Forum, Indonesia’s leadership is needed to bridge collaboration between developed and developing countries in AIS. Indonesia’s position allows encouraging concrete and inclusive collaboration between countries regardless of differences in economic status and regional area. If the cooperation with AIS’s country goes well, then AIS can play a greater role in global marine cooperation, given the uniformity of commitment and special characteristics geographically in the world arena.
Indonesia, as one of the largest archipelago countries in the world, has a very important strategic role in overcoming global problems such as climate change. In 2023, Indonesia played a major role in the Forum for Climate and Natural Resources Alliance (AIS Forum 2023) to carry out global strategies to overcome climate change.
Indonesia, as a country with extraordinary geographical and ecological diversity, has a great interest in mitigating climate change and protecting its natural resources. In the AIS 2023 forum, Indonesia has played an important role in aligning a global strategy in dealing with climate change. By cooperating with other countries, Indonesia is trying to create a sustainable and fair solution in overcoming the problem of climate change.
One of the important points raised by Indonesia in the AIS 2023 Forum is a commitment to achieve net-zero carbon emissions. This is a significant step in reducing global carbon traces, which is one of the main causes of climate change. By setting this target, Indonesia shows the world that this country is serious in combating climate change.
*) The author is an observer of social problems