Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and her US counterpart, Janet Yellen, have agreed that the impact of unresolved geopolitical issues is the reason behind the ongoing food and energy crises.
“This is considering that the various impacts caused by the conflict in Ukraine have been one of the triggers for the continued soaring of world energy prices and pose challenges to the global economy,” Indrawati said in an official statement issued here on Saturday.
To overcome this, various policy options need to be explored so that global oil supplies are maintained and world oil prices can return to pre-conflict levels, she added.
Indrawati said that the handling of the food and energy crises must be accelerated since everyone has the right to access affordable food and energy.
Therefore, her ministry will discuss the US proposal on the need for discussion with the relevant ministers dealing with the energy sector.
Meanwhile, a discussion on the energy and food crises was held during a bilateral meeting between the two countries on the sidelines of the first day of the third meeting of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) on Friday.
The meeting was the first physical meeting between the two ministers after the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings on April 22, 2022. Both parties started the meeting by discussing energy and environmental issues, as well as each country’s policies on these issues.
Indrawati also emphasized the importance of concrete and technical strategies, not only conceptual deliberations, for supporting the shift from power plants to environmentally friendly energy sources, which require substantial financing.
One of these strategies involves the Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM) policy, which was initiated and launched by Indonesia and Asian Development Bank (ADB).
Indrawati also emphasized that the results of the third FMCBG meeting will be communicated well to the global community, in line with the spirit of the Indonesian G20 Presidency to continue to work hard and contribute to addressing the major problems of the world.
This is also a manifestation of the significance and relevance of the role of the Indonesian G20 Presidency in achieving global economic recovery with other nations, in line with the theme of the Presidency, “Recover Together, Recover Stronger”.
Source: Antara News