International sustainability standards and reporting training in Indonesia

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) play a crucial role in the Indonesian economy, yet they face significant challenges in accessing global markets. This can be caused by to various factors, including a lack of awareness of trade agreements, the complexities of qualifying for preferential tariffs, and the challenge of meeting ever-evolving global sustainability standards.

To address these challenges Cowater commissioned Globally Cool to organise a comprehensive training event. This collaborative effort, funded by Global Affairs Canada, included a train-the-trainer event held in Bandung, Indonesia. This intensive program brought together representatives from the Business & Export Development Organization of Indonesia (BEDO), the Catholic University of Parahyangan (UNPAR), and the Indonesian Ministry of Trade, along with other Business Support Organisations (BSOs).

Activities

• Webinar to raise awareness: We organised a webinar on sustainability standards targeted at SMEs, trainers and consultants, government officials and NGO officials. The webinar was organised together with BEDO and UNPAR to raise awareness of the increasing importance of international sustainability standards and to reflect on the options for Indonesian businesses to prepare for such standards and to meet the sustainability requirements of the different standards. A secondary objective of the webinar was to establish a baseline of the participants’ understanding of sustainability standards and to use the event to invite participants for the Training of Trainers activity.
• Pre-training assessment and survey: We evaluated existing sustainability reporting training tools developed by BEDO and UNPAR and provided the findings of our assessment with observations and recommendations to the existing training toolkit. We also conducted a survey among the registered participants of the webinar to capture their main interests and needs. Lastly, we presented and discussed the findings with BEDO and UNPAR.
• Virtual roundtable: We facilitated a virtual roundtable with Canadian SMEs and trade organisations to share experiences and best practices with BEDO, UNPAR, and Indonesian sustainability trainers. A total of 6 Canadian SMEs and BSOs participated as resource persons in the virtual roundtable. The knowledge sharing and discussion during the virtual roundtable provided valuable insights for the trainers for the development of the training materials.
• Train the Trainer event: We conducted a 2-day intensive training session in Bandung including a soft skill training. A total of 26 local trainers participated in the event. Some 65% of the local trainers were women. By incorporating this comprehensive training skills module, the program empowered the local trainers to become not just sustainability knowledge providers but also effective communicators and facilitators.
• Pilot training sessions: We ran a pilot program in Bali and Bandung and partnered with the Indonesian Ministry of Trade's NEXT program (supporting agricultural exports), BEDO and UNPAR. 32 SMEs participated and the trainer teams of BEDO and UNPAR were able to fine-tune their knowledge and training skills. In addition, the collaboration with the Ministry of Trade guarantees long-term access to training on standards and sustainability reporting.
• Publishing of e-learning modules: We created self-paced e-learning courses to extend the training’s reach, in collaboration with unparplus - UNPAR’s e-learning platform.