LEADING INT'L POSITIONS WAITING FOR YUDHOYONO by Fardah

    Jakarta, Sept 27, 2014 (Antara) - Last year, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was considering opening a fried rice restaurant or becoming a chili farmer after his presidential tenure ends in October 2014.

       "I and Madame Ani, my beloved wife, often discuss this matter," he told the Indonesian press in Budapest on March 7, 2013.

        "I even thought of opening a fried rice restaurant. Suddenly, two weeks later, I had an idea to plant chili, instead," he said when visiting Hungary.

        And now, with less than one month before he will end his second term after leading the country for a decade, he has been offered leading positions at important international bodies, including the United Nations.

        "It is true that the UN offered President Yudhoyono a position, as the end of his term nears, in recognition of his performance during his time in office," Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa said recently.

         Yudhoyono has also received similar offers from other international organizations. "There are plenty of offers that would allow the president to be continually involved in international matters," Marty told the press.

         Presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha said Yudhoyono had been offered positions in at least three international bodies, including the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco), the Japan-Indonesia Association and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI).

         Of those offers, it has been confirmed that Yudhoyono has been nominated to be the next Chair of the South Korea-based climate change body, Council of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI).

          And he accepted the nomination at the GGGI Leaders' Gathering, held on the occasion of the United Nations Climate Summit 2014 in New York, GGGI officials said in a press release on September 23, 2014.

        "I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to the GGGI, for nominating me to become President of the Assembly and Chair of the Council," said President Yudhoyono.

        Yudhoyono's nomination for the position was unanimously accepted by GGGI leaders. Korea, as host country, was represented at the gathering by President Park Geun-hye. "I would like to sincerely congratulate President Yudhoyono, a world-class leader who has led Indonesia for the past 10 years. I firmly believe that GGGI will further develop under the new leadership of President Yudhoyono. Korea will actively cooperate and support GGGI, as well," said President Park.

         GGGI leaders also recommended that the GGGI Assembly elect Indonesia to serve as the body's President at its next session in November, which will effectively allow Yudhoyono to serve in that capacity, as well.

         "I see this nomination as an opportunity for action - for service to the cause of inclusive and sustainable growth. I regard it, also, as recognition of what Indonesia has achieved in mainstreaming a green economy in its development," Yudhoyono stated.

         His nomination as the body's president will occur after the expiration of current President Bharrat Jagdeo¿s term at the end of the year.

         "I am happy to support President Yudhoyono¿s nomination. Under his stewardship, Indonesia started world-leading, ambitious action to show that sustainable land use and economic growth are compatible objectives. I know that he can bring his vast experiences to help GGGI serve its members in their work as a catalyst for inclusive green growth," said President Jagdeo.

         The Assembly is GGGI's supreme organ and is composed of all GGGI members. It is responsible for electing members to the Council,
appointing the Director-General and advising on the overall direction of GGGI's work.

        The Assembly will vote to confirm President Yudhoyono's positions at a meeting in November, upon which he will formally assume the duties of the offices.

        As Council Chair, Yudhoyono will be replacing former Danish Prime Minister and current leader of the Liberal Party of Denmark, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, who announced in June that he will be stepping down from the position.

         "I am extremely satisfied to leave GGGI in the capable hands of my soon-to-be successor President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia. I am confident and optimistic that his commitment to, and experience with, green growth will make GGGI stronger than ever," said Chairman Rasmussen.

         The Council is the executive organ of GGGI and is responsible for directing the organization's activities, including approving GGGI's strategy, its annual work program, budget and reviewing the results.

         The Council consists of a mixture of GGGI Member countries and non-state actors, as well as the GGGI Director-General.

         GGGI's Director-General, Yvo de Boer, is the former Head of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and KPMG's Global Chairman of Climate Change and Sustainability Services.

         De Boer opened the event, strongly endorsing President Yudhoyono's new roles in the organization.

         "President Yudhoyono's strong commitment to green growth and sustainable development will provide GGGI with a new opportunity to elevate its global value and global relevance," said the Director-General.

         "Under his leadership, GGGI will strengthen its contribution to developing countries' economic growth and climate resilience," de Boer added.

        Established in June 2010 and based in Seoul, GGGI is an intergovernmental organization founded to support and promote a new model of economic growth, known as "green growth."
   Indonesia's position in the GGGI is as one of its founding members. Cooperation between the GGGI and Indonesia is realized through, among others, green planning processes and REDD+ (reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation) for sustainable development. The GGGI also cooperates with many regions in Indonesia in implementing green development. Its pilot projects are set up in Central Kalimantan and East Kalimantan.

        The organization partners with countries to help them build economies that grow strongly and are more efficient and sustainable in the use of natural resources, are less carbon intensive and more resilient to climate change.

         Earlier, prior to greeting a delegation of GGGI in Jakarta, on Sept. 9, 2014, Yudhoyono told the press "I'll have a new duty ... to take care of the earth."
    The GGGI delegation consisted of Yvo de Boer (Director General), Hyo-eun Jenny Kim (Director of Strategy, Policy, and Communication), and Anna van Paddenburg (GGGI Representative to Indonesia).

        Yudhoyono will hand over the Indonesian presidency to president-elect Joko "Jokowi" Widodo in October 2014, after serving the country since October 2004. ***1***
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