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Indonesia is home to some of the most diverse coral reefs and reef fish in the world, particularly within the Coral Triangle seascapes, which span across Southeast Asia and the Pacific. However, these important ecosystems face significant threats from overfishing, destructive fishing practices, climate change, and unsustainable coastal tourism. To address these challenges, the Coral Bond was proposed as part of Indonesia’s broader efforts to enhance the management and protection of its marine resources and improve the coastal livelihood.

© Siska Sihombing

The critically endangered Hawksbill Turtle in the Indonesian sea.

Coral Bond project preparation mission

Held on August 20-21, 2024, the Coral Bond Project Preparation Mission brought together key stakeholders, including representatives from Indonesia’s Directorate General of Marine Spatial Planning, BAPPENAS, the Indonesia Environment Fund (BPDLH), and the World Bank. The mission focused on discussing the foundation for the Coral Bond, a proposed innovative financial mechanism aimed at supporting marine conservation.

The Coral Bond represents a groundbreaking financial instrument designed to mobilise private capital to conserve coral reef ecosystems within marine protected areas (MPAs) in Indonesia. This innovative bond is structured as an outcomes-based financing mechanism, where the returns to investors are directly tied to the achievement of specific, measurable conservation outcomes, such as the improvement of the coral reef fish biomass in the three (3) selected MPAs. The Coral Bond builds on Indonesia’s existing efforts, such as the World Bank-financed Oceans for Prosperity Project (), which aims to improve MPA management. However, the Coral Bond goes a step further by introducing a performance-based approach, where payments are made only if predefined conservation targets are met. This approach not only ensures accountability and effectiveness in conservation efforts but also attracts private investment by reducing risks associated with traditional conservation funding models.

Set to commence in 2025 and continue through 2030, the Coral Bond project serves as a critical component of Indonesia’s broader roadmap to strengthen its marine conservation and achieve its sustainability goals by 2030.

© Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries of Indonesia

The Coral Bond meeting participants.

������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List introductory workshop: setting the Standard for Indonesian Marine Protected Areas

Following the Coral Bond discussions, the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List Workshop occurred on 22 August, 2024, at the Hotel Grand Mercure Harmoni in Jakarta. The introductory workshop aimed to introduce the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List Standard - a globally recognised Standard for equitable governance and effective management of protected and conserved areas (PCAs) to the Indonesian marine protected area (MPA) managers and practitioners.

Mr. Kusdiantoro, Secretary of the Directorate General of Marine Space Management, enthusiastically opened the workshop: “We are excited that the MPA effectiveness measurement will be based on the global conservation standard using the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List. This is because we will implement the Coral Bond initiative, which will be carried out for the first time in Indonesia. If successful, this Bond financing mechanism could even be adopted by other countries.”

© Siska Sihombing

MPA site management, KKN Alor and KKN/KKD Raja Ampat, during the simulation exercise using the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List rapid assessment.

Approximately 100 participants (in-person and virtual) attended this workshop, that was facilitated in Indonesian by the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Global Protected and Conserved Areas. The participants included representatives from the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (including MPA Management Units), Coordinating Ministry for Maritime and Investment Affairs, Ministry of National Development Planning, World Bank, EVIKA (National Evaluation of MPA Management Effectiveness) Assessment Team, and key NGOs. The event was a success, as participants actively engaged in discussions and simulation exercises to help them rapidly assess one MPA as a case study, against the Standard.

The workshop’s success was underscored by the enthusiasm of the participants who actively engaged in the sessions, reflecting the importance of the Green List integration to Indonesia’s MPAs evaluation. The Directorate General of Marine Spatial and Ocean Management expressed gratitude to ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� for its support, highlighting the workshop, which gave the site management staff an early understanding of the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List Standard.

All in-person participants positively responded to the evaluation survey disseminated at the end of the day and expressed strong optimism about applying for the Green List in Indonesian MPAs, stating, “We are very confident and optimistic about applying for the Green List programme. We will need to adjust the EVIKA indicators to align with the Green List Standard, and ensure the progress and that the evidence for each indicator is verifiable and complete.” Many participants suggested the alignment between EVIKA and the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List Standard will be conducted soon to begin with.

Strengthening national and global synergies

The Coral Bond Project Identification Mission and the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List Workshop demonstrate Indonesia’s early commitment to integrating global biodiversity frameworks with national priorities. In February 2024, ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� was invited to participate in the IBSAP (Indonesian NBSAP) dialogues with the involved Ministries and instances, seeking to address the successes and gaps of previous plans while setting new priorities for biodiversity conservation in Indonesia. This revision process involved international consultations and technical meetings between the Ministries and relevant instances held in Bogor, Indonesia​. The ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List Standard, the OECMs principles, and the other ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� standards, tools and methodologies (������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Red List, NbS, etc.) were presented to the participants.

This ongoing IBSAP revision process, scheduled for completion before the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP16) to the CBD in October 2024, emphasises a participatory approach, ensuring that the updated strategy reflects global goals and national needs. This comprehensive approach is essential for achieving the national targets set in the Kunming-Montreal GBF and enhancing Indonesia’s biodiversity conservation​effectiveness.

As Indonesia continues to advance its marine conservation efforts, these events highlight the importance of collaboration between national and international stakeholders. The ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ��’s involvement in these strategic initiatives underscores its commitment to promoting global conservation standards.

More efforts for marine conservation in the region

The ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ��’s involvement in the upcoming Coral Bond initiative will also complement the efforts undertaken within the Solutions for Marine and Coastal Resilience in the Coral Triangle (SOMACORE) project, which plays a role in enhancing the management of marine and coastal ecosystems within the Coral Triangle region at the regional, transboundary seascapes and national levels. The SOMACORE project also seeks to implement the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Green List Standard across the region, providing a globally recognised framework for effective and equitable management of selected MPAs in six (6) countries: Indonesia, Timor Leste, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. The project also focuses on building the capacity of local communities and stakeholders and facilitating the learning platform and exchanges through . The primary target partner of this project is the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security or CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat, which just recently concluded and signed an MoU with ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� in the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Regional Conservation Forum in Bangkok on 3 September 2024.