Canada announced the following investments to strengthen its partnership with the Indo-Pacific region and in support of key areas of focus at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Building resilient and sustainable infrastructure
While visiting the Indo-Pacific Region in September 2023, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took the opportunity to spotlight two new projects being supported by Canadian financing dedicated to green infrastructure projects in the region:
World Bank Energy Transition Program - Indonesia Sustainable Least cost Electrification Pipeline Project (IBRD Trust Fund)
Funding: $64.05 million loan
Supported by a loan from this program the Indonesia Sustainable Least-cost Electrification-1 (ISLE-1) Program will increase access to sustainable and lower-cost electricity for around 2 million people in eastern Indonesia. It will also strengthen infrastructure resilience and support communities’ ability to adapt to climate change. By providing access to clean and affordable energy for low-income regions, this program supports sustainable economic development and will help create more economic opportunities, especially for women.
This project’s loan comes from The Energy Transition Program, one of four programs under the Canada-World Bank Clean Energy and Forests Climate Facility (CEFCF).
As part of Canada’s $2.65 billion climate finance commitment, Canada established the Canada Clean Energy and Forest Climate Facility at the World Bank to support governments to implement transformational climate actions that contribute to decarbonization and resilience to climate shocks in a gender-responsive manner.
Karian Serpong Water Supply Project
Funding: $40 million loan
The Karian Serpong Water Supply Project will help improve access to safe and clean water in Jakarta and the surrounding Tangerang and South Tangerang areas to an estimated 2.4 million people, through the construction and operation of a water treatment plant and associated facilities. The project will help with climate adaptation by breaking the cycle of excessive groundwater abstraction, contributing to the recovery of groundwater levels while reducing the risks of flooding during heavy rainfall events. The implementation of the project will advance gender equality, including targets for paid technical internships and technical jobs for women in the operations of the facilities.
Canada’s loan to support this sub-project has been drawn from previously announced funding from the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector in Asia II, with the Asian Development Bank.
Expanding trade links
Team Canada Trade Missions to the Indo-Pacific (TCTM)
Funding: $45 million over five years (2023-2028)
In February 2023, the Government of Canada announced a new series of large-scale Team Canada Trade Missions to the Indo-Pacific (TCTM). The trade missions will highlight sectors where Canada has a competitive advantage, helping exporters and innovators position themselves in regional markets by showcasing their capabilities and competitiveness, and facilitating long-term trade and investment opportunities. Upcoming trade missions will include Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, and Vietnam.
Cooperating on peace and security
Mitigation of Biological Threats (MBT) in the ASEAN Region (Phase III) Program
Funding: $10 million ($2 million per year over five years from 2023 to 2028)
Canada and ASEAN are building on our political and security co-operation by enhancing funding for the long-standing and highly successful ASEAN-Canada Mitigation of Biological Threat (MBT) in the ASEAN Region Program ($26 million invested since 2013). Drawn from Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, this new funding will be delivered by the Government of Canada’s Weapons Threat Reduction Program to support the ASEAN Secretariat and ASEAN member countries to further bolster health-security capabilities through targeted investments in the ASEAN Centre for Public Health Emergencies and Emerging Diseases (ACPHEED) for biosafety, biosecurity, and disease surveillance.
Support for Sustainable Nuclear Security Training in Thailand and other countries in the ASEAN region
Funding: $2.6 million over three years (December 2022 to October 2025)
To reduce the threat to Southeast Asian populations of a nuclear or radiological security event, and in support of Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, the federal government’s Weapons Threat Reduction Program will provide funding to the World Institute for Nuclear Security (WINS) to support nuclear security training activities in Thailand and to help expand the training offered by Thailand’s Nuclear Security Support Centre (NSSC). By expanding nuclear security competencies within Southeast Asia, this project aims to help mitigate the risk of a nuclear security incident.
Supporting sustainable development in Indonesia
Development assistance for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) projects
- Better Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights for all in Indonesia (BERANI) – Phase two
Funding: $10 million over five years - Increasing Sexual and Reproductive Autonomy
Funding: $3.3 million over four years (out of a total $10 million allocation to Indonesia, Nigeria, and Bolivia)
Through these two projects, Canada is helping to further advance the rights of women and girls by improving access to quality and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health information and services, providing support to survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, and addressing harmful practices such as child, early, and forced marriage. These programs will contribute to ensuring women and adolescent girls have the information and services they need to keep themselves and their families healthy and to reach their full potential.
Investing in the Indo-Pacific’s green economy
GuarantCo Ltd sub-projects in ASEAN countries
Funding: $40 million repayable contribution in GuarantCo
Canada’s contribution has enabled GuarantCo to expand and scale its portfolio, by leveraging the funds up to three times so it can provide up to $120 million in guarantees for infrastructure in developing countries. Diverse projects across the Indo-Pacific Region have been enabled by these guarantees, including:
- EVN Finance (Vietnam): A Vietnamese non-bank financial institution, EVN Finance will use proceeds from bonds to support lending to renewable energy projects such as solar and wind in the country.
- First Finance (Cambodia): First Finance will use proceeds from bonds to fund 470 new and affordable mortgage loans for mainly low and middle-income households in Cambodia. First Finance is the only microfinance institution in Cambodia that is dedicated solely to providing long-term mortgages to this community.
- Royal Railway (Cambodia): Royal Railway Cambodia will use proceeds from bonds to purchase new trains and finance renewal and upgrades of the country’s railway network, increasing capacity and efficiency to respond to the large unmet demand for freight and public services.
Connecting people
Canada-ASEAN Partnership Forum on Education
Funding: $120,000
A Canada-ASEAN Partnership Forum, to be held on the margins of the annual Canadian Bureau for International Education conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, in November 2023, will welcome over 250 international education professionals and stakeholders. The Government of Canada funding will include bursaries to help international delegates attend the Forum. The Forum is part of Canada’s commitment to developing institutional partnerships across the region, fostering mutually beneficial partnerships between Canada and ASEAN academic institutions, and strengthening Canada’s international education engagement in the ASEAN region.