Beyond pledges: Indonesia prepares its climate action plan for COP31

 As world leaders prepare to gather in Antalya, Türkiye, for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) from November 9 to 20, global discussions on climate change are entering a new phase.

The time for simply making promises is passing. The international community now demands direct implementation.

The Turkish Presidency of COP31 has officially designated the event as the "Implementation COP." Its primary goal is to shift global focus from setting targets to tracking real progress on the ground.

The agenda covers several urgent areas, including energy transition, resilient cities, circular economies, sustainable food systems, green industrial transformation, climate finance, and the protection of vulnerable ecosystems.

For Indonesia, this shift in focus brings both a valuable opportunity and a critical moment for self-evaluation.

In October 2025, Indonesia submitted its Second Nationally Determined Contribution (Second NDC), establishing a clear roadmap for its climate commitments through 2035.

Because of this, Antalya must not serve merely as a venue to repeat past targets. It must become a practical platform to show how far those commitments have been turned into concrete policies, secure financing, real projects, and measurable results.

A key indicator of Indonesia's progress lies in its emissions reduction numbers. Data from the National Registry System for Climate Change Control (SRN PPI) shows that, based on 2024 figures, total emissions across all sectors stood at 1,495.58 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.

At the same time, the reduction against the baseline reached 775.97 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, representing a 34.16 percent contribution relative to the baseline for that period.

While these figures give Indonesia a solid foundation to demonstrate progress, they also highlight the need for consistent, long-term measurement. Reliable reporting ensures that national achievements can be clearly measured against NDC targets over time.

To prepare for the Antalya summit, Indonesia has focused heavily on strengthening its climate data governance.

Since July 2026, the government has operated a new generation of the SRN PPI as a unified national climate data platform. This system integrates mitigation actions, emissions inventories, and reduction achievements into a single national registry.

In addition, the Environment Ministry launched SIGN SMART Robust to improve national emissions accounting. This step is essential as the credibility of any climate policy depends on a country's ability to present consistent, transparent, and verifiable data to the world.

Beyond data tracking, the energy sector represents one of Indonesia's biggest challenges and opportunities. The country holds immense potential in new and renewable energy, electric vehicles, power grid upgrades, and energy efficiency programs.

A clear example of this ambition is state utility PLN’s Electricity Supply Business Plan (RUPTL) for 2025–2034. The plan targets an additional 69.5 gigawatts of electricity generation capacity, with roughly 76 percent coming from renewable energy sources integrated with advanced energy storage systems.

However, moving away from fossil fuels remains a complex process. Indonesia continues to face growing energy demand alongside a historical reliance on fossil fuels.

Consequently, the main challenge is not just the total capacity of clean power plants constructed, but how quickly the energy grid can transform without hurting national energy security or creating economic instability.

Evaluating the energy transition also requires looking beyond power generation numbers. Cutting coal consumption directly affects the daily lives of workers, coal-producing regions, supporting industries, and regional government revenues.

A just transition

This reality calls for a just transition. Policies must ensure that communities affected by shifts in the energy sector gain access to retraining, new skills, and alternative jobs.

Through this approach, the energy transition becomes a broad economic transformation that protects vulnerable groups while reducing emissions.