Host country Indonesia has proposed four steps to achieve environmentally-friendly development at the International Conference on Sustainable Development (ICSD) on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Bali.

The ICSD, jointly held by Indonesia and the UN Sustainable Development Solution Network (UNSDSN), attracted attention in the context that sustainable and equal development is topping APEC agenda.

The event also marked the establishment of a Sustainable Development Solution Network in Southeast Asia (SDSN-SEA) and a similar one in Indonesia .

Addressing the conference, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono stressed that the world is facing a range of environmental problems, and in order to tackle them, new and more environmentally-friendly development modes are needed.

He thus proposed four steps along this direction, first of all globalization should be accelerated to connect governments, entrepreneurs and people in dealing with arising problems. Countries should be honest in assessing domestic efforts, in order to identify their own strengths and weaknesses and stop efforts that can put pressure on the environment and undermine sustainable development, he said.

The President also urged strengthening the integration of environmental needs in strategic development with a view to adjusting the economic structure, including consumption and production patterns.

Lastly, he said governments and all stakeholders need to work in partnership in promoting sustainable growth with equity. He stressed the need to have more international cooperation and teamwork and less geopolitics competition.-VNA