Local Stakeholder Consultation Workshop on the: “Sustainability Impact Assessment (SIA) in support of trade and investment negotiations between the European Union and the Republic of Indonesia” completed on 10 August 2018.
On 10 August 2018, a workshop was held in Jakarta to discuss with local stakeholders the Sustainability Impact Assessment (SIA) in support of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) / Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) negotiations between the European Union (EU) and the Republic of Indonesia.
As a central component of the SIA, the Local Stakeholder Consultation Workshop was designed to provide an opportunity for stakeholders to share their views on the expected impacts of the FTA / CEPA with other interested parties. In doing so, it focused on the four main pillars of the SIA: Economic, Social, Human rights, and Environment.
The workshop brought together 60 stakeholders representing non-governmental organisations, businesses clusters, labour organisations, research institutes, other civil society actors, and international organisations based in Indonesia. The participants included representatives of local business umbrella and sectorial organisations (e.g. KADIN, European Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia, Indonesian Palm Oil Association, Indonesian Textiles Association), trade unions confederations and sectorial association (e.g. KSBSI, KSPSI, GSBI), human rights NGOs (e.g. Indonesia for Global Justice, IMPARSIAL), environmental groups (e.g. WWF, WALHI), research bodies (Centre for Indonesian Policy Studies, Centre for International Forestry Research), as well international organisations such as the International Labour Organisation and the United Nations Development Programme.
Following the Study Team’s presentation on the SIA’s methodological approach and on some of the preliminary findings of the research carried out so far, stakeholders shared their comments and suggestions with the Study Team, as well as with the representatives of the Directorate General for Trade of the European Commission and of the Delegation of the EU to Indonesia. The workshop also included a panel discussion on specific sectors of particular interest for the SIA with representatives of a range of Indonesian interests groups.
The audience raised a wide range of topics, including: possible impacts on workers, including in the informal sector, challenges and opportunities for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), the design of redistribution and adjustment policies, expectations on the reduction of trade barriers for both parties, the role of mechanisms for the monitoring of the future agreement and its impacts, the scope and objectives of provisions on trade and sustainable development, issues related to policy space, possible implications for indigenous people, and the expected modernisation of some of Indonesia’s key industries among others. Palm oil and mining appeared as sectors of specific relevance for the SIA. Discussions also focused on the role of Indonesia in global value chains and the opportunities and risks that could arise from the CEPA in this regard.
Stakeholders are welcome to participate in the consultation through the on-line survey (available at: http://www.eu-indonesia-sia.com/the-survey/). Further input can also be shared via personal interviews with the Study Team, or through the official social media accounts on Facebook (@EUIndonesiaSIA) and Twitter (@EU_ID_SIA).