Commitment and Competition
Numerous global commitments to sustainable development, orchestrated by the United Nations, have played a pivotal role. For instance, the Kyoto Protocol, established in 1997 in Japan as an extension of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), marked the initiation of global discourse concerning climate change and its subsequent intricacies. This has encompassed matters such as the environment, deforestation, social and economic aspects, and health concerns, all of which intersect within the global trade of vegetable oil.
Indonesia’s government formally approved the Kyoto Protocol by enacting Law Number 17/2004 for its ratification. However, the Kyoto Protocol has revealed vulnerabilities in its implementation. It placed developing countries, which were still in the process of advancing towards industrialization, under the obligation to curtail greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within land use zones through deforestation prevention and adopt sustainable energy practices within the energy sector. Paradoxically, some developed nations that had already undergone industrialization opted not to adhere to the Kyoto Protocol and withdrew their support in 2001. Nevertheless, in subsequent years, these nations renewed their commitment to lowering GHG emissions.
In the global scale, the commitment develops into social and human rights sectors by the inaugurating United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) in 2011. Though Indonesia does not ratify UNGPs yet, but in many chances, the government claimed its commitment to reinforce UNGPs implementation.
It is undeniable that Indonesia does its best to be the golden one in climate change – conferences globally. The peak was when Indonesia was the host of Conference of the Parties 13th (COP13) UNFCCC in 2007 in Bali. The commitment of Indonesia got stronger until COP28 in Dubai in June 2023. In the release of Ministry of Environment and Forestry in COP28, the target to reduce GHG emission would be from 29 percent to be 31,89 percent with the power from this nation; and escalating from 41 percent to be 43,20 percent with other countries’ helps in 2030.
These undeniable commitments seriously delivered implication to get new governance in palm oil plantation industries in Indonesia, namely in environmental and social sectors. The government also delivered answer by publishing Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) certification/standard.
The corporates also responded the development adaptation in the globe by reinforcing their environment, social, and governance (ESG) commitment. In specific in internal palm oil plantation companies, they published no deforestation, no peat, and no exploitation (NDPE) policy, and some companies are voluntarily committed to get Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) standard.
