Deltacountries Indonesia

Deltacountry Indonesia

Indonesia is one of the seven delta countries that are part of the delta country approach of the Partners for Water programme 2022 – 2027

This approach promotes sustainable and integrated water management through long-term partnerships and leverages experiences and results from previous Partner for Water programmes. Discover our partnership with Indonesia and how you can participate below.

What we do in Indonesia

Partners for Water uses its network, knowledge and financing to work on water security challenges in partner countries. This is done by applying the expertise in sustainable, integrated, inclusive and innovative water management from the Dutch- and local water sectors in early planning phases.

The Governments of the Netherlands and Indonesia have a long-lasting cooperation on water which is secured in a Memorandum of Understanding on Water (MoU Water) for 2022-2027. Our vision is to work together in an integrated, inclusive and sustainable manner, drawing on an equal partnership that involves stakeholders from the government, private sector, NGOs, IFI’s, young professionals and knowledge institutions.

During the Joint Steering Committee (JSC) – a high-level moment to evaluate the bilateral cooperation – in November 2023, both governments agreed to work towards a more programmatic approach on three themes: lowland development and irrigation, integrated water resilience, and capacity development, knowledge exchange and youth engagement. These three themes define the priorities for Partners for Water in Indonesia.

How we work in Indonesia

Integrated water resilience from North-Java

Partners for Water collaborates with the Indonesian Ministries of Public Works and Housing (PUPR) and National Development Planning (Bappenas) to enhance integrated water management and flood management for North Java, an Indonesian national priority. Delta management (in a low-lying delta), as one of the key fields of expertise of the Dutch water sector, is very much applicable to North Java. It consists of many rivers, originating from the nearby mountains, which flow into a low-lying coastal area. Therefore, many bilateral projects – in the past and ongoing – are being implemented in North Java. The projects address key challenges observed across major urban centres and coastline, such as flooding, land subsidence ,sedimentation and coastal erosion. Developing a more programmatic approach is envisioned to improve synergies among the activities, as well as alignment with activities and investments of other parties.

Lowland development and irrigation

Since the early 2000s, the Netherlands and Indonesia have intensively collaborated on lowland areas. As part of the JSC outcomes, Partners for Water has aimed to revisit the collaboration to identify opportunities for jointly and sustainably enhancing food security in existing lowland areas. Through capacity building and coordination, incorporating Dutch expertise, innovation and technology, Partners for Water aims to contribute and support infrastructure investment, operation and maintenance by PUPR and international development partners.

Capacity development, knowledge exchange and youth engagement

As a cross-cutting theme, Partners for Water aims to foster collaboration among the involved partners by exploring innovative methods of knowledge exchange and adopting an integrated approach that involves governments, the knowledge sector, and the business sector. By encouraging the engagement of young people, like students and young professionals, in project activities, exchange of knowledge from the older to the younger generation is among the key priorities.

How you can get involved

Are you currently working on water projects in Indonesia or exploring how to do so? Or just curious about participating in the Partners for Water initiatives? Here are ways for you to get involved:

Apply for our tenders focused on innovative solutions in delta countries like Indonesia. Find more information on our news page.
Join our annual Indonesia platform meeting or one of the other Partners for Water events. Check out our events page for upcoming events.
Follow us on LinkedIn and subscribe to our newsletter to stay updated on our tenders, activities, events and projects.
Apply for the Partners for Water subsidy. Explore whether you are eligible.
Get in touch with our Project Advisor for Indonesia: Simon van Meijeren