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COP30 host Brazil launches key forest conservation fund
Norway committed $3 billion over the next ten years subject to specific conditions, Brazil and Indonesia reconfirmed their $1 billion commitments
New Delhi: Brazil, the host of COP30, officially launched the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) at the COP30 Leaders’ Summit on Thursday. The TFFF is an initiative that incentivises the conservation and expansion of tropical forests by making annual payments to Tropical Forest Countries that maintain their standing forests.
It was endorsed by 53 countries with rainforests and those without rainforests on the day of its launch including China, Canada, UAE, Finland, United Kingdom, Japan, Australia to Indonesia, Germany, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia,Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Peru among others. India has not endorsed the scheme yet as per the list provided by the Brazilian Presidency.
In total, 34 tropical forest countries endorsed the TFFF Declaration, covering over 90% of the tropical forests in developing countries, including Indonesia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and China.
The union environment ministry did not immediately respond to a query on whether India is likely to endorse the fund or benefit from it.
India has around 23,888 km2 area under tropical wet evergreen forest type according to the Forest Survey of India. Most of India’s rainforests are in the Western Ghats, parts of northeast India and in the Andaman and Nicobar region.
On Thursday, the launch of TFFF hosted by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva saw endorsements from 53 countries, including 19 potential sovereign investors. “It was a significant milestone for the TFFF and marks the beginning of a new era of global collaboration between public and private investment, driving permanent conservation strategies and strengthening partnerships worldwide to safeguard the most critical tropical ecosystems,” the Brazilian Presidency said.
Norway committed $3 billion over the next ten years subject to specific conditions, Brazil and Indonesia reconfirmed their $1 billion commitments, Portugal committed $1 million, France indicated that, under specific conditions, they would consider committing up to €500 million until 2030, the Netherlands committed $5 million for the secretariat, and Germany fully endorsed the TFFF, and stated that their financial commitment will be discussed between President Lula and Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
The TFFF is a historic paradigm shift in global efforts to protect and restore tropical forests, as the facility will address a market failure and recognise the value of, and pay for, the ecosystem services provided by tropical forests to the world. The TFFF creates an unprecedented global financial incentive to protect standing tropical forests, rather than destroying them.
“The Tropical Forest Forever Facility we are launching today is an unprecedented initiative. For the first time in history, countries of the Global South will take a leading role in a forest agenda,” said President Lula da Silva.
“The Tropical Forest Forever Facility will be one of the main tangible outcomes in the spirit of COP30 implementation. It is symbolic that the celebration of its birth is taking place here in Belem, surrounded by sumaúmas, açaí palms, andirobas, and jacarandás. In just a few years, we will begin to see the fruits of this fund. We will take pride in remembering that it was in the heart of the Amazon rainforest that we took this step together,” he added.
The World Bank is the trustee and interim host of the TFFF. The dialogue with potential investors, both public and private, will continue towards the medium-term goal of achieving a $125 billion Fund, combining $25 billion in sponsor capital from sovereign sources and $100 billion from institutional investors, the Brazilian Presidency has said.
TFFF has the potential to support the protection of over 1 billion hectares of tropical forests in over 70 developing countries. Payments to countries will be based on satellite remote sensing data that tracks forest canopy cover annually in a low-cost and transparent manner. The TFFF design was led by Brazil in partnership with DRC, Ghana, Malaysia, Indonesia, Colombia, the UK, Germany, Norway, France, the UAE, and counted with the valuable contributions of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
