UNDP also calls on enterprises and investors to adopt the SDG Impact Standards to strengthen contributions to sustainability and the SDGs

Jakarta, March 16 2022: The Indonesia SDG Investor Map (the Map) was launched today at an event hosted by the Government of Indonesia, UNDP Indonesia and UNDP’s SDG Impact.  The private sector can use the Map to explore the 18 identified investment themes and business models across six SDG-enabling sectors which are aligned to Government SDG policies that have the potential for deep development impact. The event also formally introduced the SDG Impact Standards, the only management standards in the market that enable organizations to consider all 17 SDGs holistically.

The Map was co-created by UNDP Indonesia and SDG Impact, with support from Temasek Trust as a collaborative partner. Indonesia is the first ASEAN country to launch an SDG Investor Map. The Map joins 18 other Maps spanning the developing markets on the SDG Investor Platform. The six SDG-enabling sectors are Education, Healthcare, Agriculture, Renewable Energy, Financials and Infrastructure. The identified investment themes and business models have already seen positive investor activity and recorded favourable exits, laying the grounds for further scale. Indeed, nearly 4 out of 5 (78%) of the business models identified have raised funding of over USD 1 million. The Map also explores digitalization, climate, gender and marginalization as underpinning themes.

The intelligence produced by the Map will also help inform Indonesia’s post-COVID-19 “Build Forward Better” strategy, as the Government commits to close the SDG financing gap by encouraging private sector investors and other non-state actors to take a role in SDG investment. The Government has set an ambitious G20 agenda on sustainable finance, which is reflected in the work being carried out by the Sustainable Finance Working Group, Infrastructure Working Group, Development Working Group and Climate Sustainability Working Group, among others. The resulting work will be a key contributor in directing more fund flows into SDG-enabling sectors through commercial and blended finance capital to reverse the negative impacts of the pandemic.

In addition to using the Map, UNDP calls on enterprises and investors to adopt the SDG Impact Standards (The Standards) to embed sustainability and the SDGs into their internal management practices. The Standards can help improve impact integrity and increase the likelihood for an organization’s activities to have positive impacts on people and the planet. There are four sets of Standards catering to the following asset classes: Private Equity Funds, Bond Issuers, Enterprises and the OECD/UNDP Impact Standards for Financing Sustainable Development.

Dr. Arifin Rudiyanto, Chair of the Implementing Committee in the National Coordination Team of Sustainable Development Goals, and Deputy Minister for Maritime and Natural Resources Affairs, Ministry of National Development Planning, said the Indonesia SDG Investor Map could support SDG acceleration in Indonesia. He shared, “The Government of Indonesia is committed to be the forefront pioneer and a role model to achieve SDGs. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Government of Indonesia has prioritized the principles of sustainability in Indonesia's future development by redesigning the economic transformation. The Indonesia SDG Investor Map is one of the collective efforts launched today that is really essential to achieve this goal. The Map can support the collaboration between Government and Non-State which is designed to serve 264 million people – a third of which are children – comprising 1,300 ethnic groups across 17,000 islands. The Map adequately captures the investment potential and policy momentum using impactful market intelligence that can contribute positively to the SDGs.”

“As the COVID-19 pandemic shows signs of abating, governments throughout the world must use this chance to refocus investment goals and economic growth toward a more sustainable and environmentally friendly pathway. The Indonesian government welcomes the launching of the Indonesia SDG Investor Map, which will support the country's efforts to dramatically expand investment opportunities, especially the ones with a major contribution toward the SDG's achievement in Indonesia,” said Mr. Nurul Ichwan, Deputy Minister of Investment Planning, Ministry of Investment.

Mr. Norimasa Shimamura, Resident Representative UNDP Indonesia, reflected, “There are investors out there looking for SDG opportunities, but have not been able to make their investment decisions simply due to limited information and knowledge about the local market.  Indeed, one of the challenges in mobilizing private sector finance for SDG projects has been the limited availability of data and insight into SDG-aligned investment possibilities. And here is where our Indonesia SDG Investor Map comes into play.”

Ms. Cheo Hock Kuan, CEO of Temasek Trust, said, “As Temasek Trust embarks on our journey in impact investing, we see a need to support the advancement of the SDGs through an intentional approach to generate measurable social and environmental outcomes. We are pleased to be SDG Impact's anchor partner in Asia, and to be able to contribute towards driving awareness, adoption and application of SDG Impact Standards and tools in the region in a way that is useful and relevant to the Asian context. The Indonesia SDG Investor Map launched today will provide a rich inventory of impact business models and investment opportunity areas that will help mobilize private sector resources and accelerate progress towards the SDGs.”

Ms. Fabienne Michaux, Director, UNDP SDG Impact, added, “It is an honour to launch the Indonesia SDG Investor Map together with UNDP Indonesia, the Ministry of National Development Planning and the Ministry of Investment of Indonesia with the support of Temasek Trust. The premise of the SDG Investor Maps is to direct more private capital to the developing markets while simultaneously advancing the SDGs using in-depth data and aligned government policies to support the investment case. With the now available market intelligence and with the SDG Impact Standards, investors, businesses and governments will develop a more resilient and prosperous future for people and planet.”

UNDP, its government partners and the Temasek Trust plan to host collaborative events and other activities to engage investors with the Map and the Standards. The goal is to create spaces for private sector enabling policy dialogues with the ambition to build an impact ecosystem where all investments and business activities embed sustainability at the core and ensuring that people and planet are at the centre of decision-making.