First thing first your gonna have to find the area of the triangle within the rectangle. 
Area of triangle = 1/2 b x h 
                              = (1/2 9) x 4 
                               = 4.5 x 4 
                                = 18 cm square 
Then after finding the area of the triangle your gonna find the area of the rectangle. 
Area of rectangle = length x width 
                                12 x 4 = 48 
                                = 48 cm square 
Then your gonna subtract the area of the triangle from the area of the rectangle. 
Area of rectangle = 48 cm square 
Area of triangle    = 18 cm square 
                              = 30 cm square 
So the shaded region is 30 cm square