14 DAY TRIAL // Yesterday, Norway, Britain and the United States announced that they were ready and willing to spend some $280 million (€207.1 million) on curbing deforestation. Specifically, the three countries wish to slow deforestation for agriculture and thus reduce global emissions associated with forest conversion.
The World Bank is to work closely with the three countries on this project, dubbed the Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes. Specifically, the Bank will be the one to administer the money.
“The initiative will be managed by the BioCarbon Fund, a public-private program housed within the World Bank that mobilizes finance for activities that sequester or conserve carbon emissions in forest and agricultural systems,” the organization details in a press release.
Information shared with the public says that Norway will contribute $135 million (€99.8 million) to this green-oriented initiative. Britain and the United States will allocate $120 million (€88.7 million) and $25 million (€18.4 million), respectively.
According to the World Bank, the goal of this initiative is to limit climate change and global warming. In order to achieve this, hefty investments will be made to help countries implement better land-management practices.
“The fate of the climate, forests, and agriculture are bound together. If agriculture and land-use change continue to produce up to 30 percent of global greenhouse gases, it will mean further disaster and disruption from climate change.”
“That's why the new BioCarbon Fund Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes it so important. Its grants and results-based financing aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the land sector, through REDD+ [Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation], climate-smart agriculture practices and land-use planning,” explains Rachel Kyte, the World Bank’s vice president of sustainable development.
Detailed information concerning how the $280 million will be spent has not yet been made available. However, the World Bank says that, according to preliminary discussions, some 4 – 6 programs intended to curb deforestation for agriculture will be implemented in Africa, Asia and Latin America.