Semarang – Pekalongan City is one of the cities that received climate change adaptation funding by the adaptation fund (AF) body, established under the Kyoto Protocol of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. In front of AF representatives from 20 countries, the Pekalongan City Government presented its climate change programme, on 5-9 June 2023.
Pekalongan City Acting Regional Secretary Anita Heru Kusumorini said AF provides grants and full ownership to developing countries to carry out climate change adaptation projects. “Pekalongan City is one of the cities in Indonesia that received funding from AF that was channelled by partnership institutions,” she said in an official statement.
Furthermore, Kusumorini said Pekalongan City was chosen as one of the AF funding targets because the impact of climate change is getting worse. Among other things, the rise in sea levels over the past 10 years, she said, has been greatly felt, along with land subsidence. Seasonal flooding and tidal floods for 10 years have affected the economy and social life in the region.
In relation to this, the Central Java Provincial Government and the central government have built tidal barriers in an effort to prevent sea and river water from overflowing into residential areas. Even so, he continued, the prevention effort has not been able to solve the problem optimally because the construction of the embankment is only on one east side of the river.
“We hope the west side of the river can be addressed together through funds from the partnership to protect the beach by building a water breaker or planting mangroves,” he said.
Through the visit of AFs from 20 countries, the city government is expected to learn from the experience of neighbouring countries in overcoming similar problems. (Hartatik)
