Indonesia calls for use of creative finance to achieve SDGs

Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesian President Joko Widodo has raised the topic of blended finance at the ASEAN Leaders Gathering in Bali on October 11 as part of the bloc’s efforts  to pursue sustainable development goals (SDGs).

In a joint statement with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, President Widodo said Indonesia encourages creative forms of financing, including blended finance.

The Indonesian President also stressed the need for global cooperation to pursue SDGs set by the UN General Assembly in order to achieve them by 2030.

He emphasised that SDGs cannot be achieved with each country working in isolation, instead can be reached through global leadership and shared responsibility.

Member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have performed well in pursuing the SDGs, as indicated by the fast economic growth among the group’s members, he said.

Accordingly, economic growth of the ASEAN member nations has grown above average, while poverty rates in ASEAN have decreased by 68 percent in the last 15 years.

Speaking of Indonesia’s SDG accomplishments, President Widodo revealed that his country’s poverty rate had been reduced to 9.8 percent in 2018, while Indonesian people’s access to clean water had increased to 76.74 percent. The provision of healthcare services though the National Health Insurance had reached 77.78 percent and the ratio of children with stunted growth had declined to 28.6 percent, he added.–VNA