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Guyana in forest carbon first

Fourteen developing countries, including Guyana, have been selected as the first states to receive money for combating tropical deforestation and climate change from an initial US$82M partnership between those countries and nine industrialized states, according to a press release from the World Bank.

The countries to benefit are the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Guyana, Mexico, Panama, Nepal, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Vietnam. They will receive initial funding from the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF), an innovative approach to financing efforts to combat climate change. The FCPF aims to reduce deforestation and forest degradation by compensating developing countries for greenhouse gas emission reductions.

The release, which was issued on Monday, noted that the partnership, approved by the World Bank Board of Executive Directors on September 25, 2007, became functionally operational on June 25 this year.

The 14 tropical and sub-tropical countries will receive grant support as they build their capacity to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) and tap into future systems of positive incentives for REDD.

This development as it relates to Guyana was welcomed by Conservation International (CI), a non-governmental organization that provides advice and support to the Guyana government. Executive Director of CI, Dr. David Singh told Stabroek News in an invited comment that the organization was very, very pleased with the partnership. “It is a very important step in Guyana’s overall initiative to value its forest for the services it provides globally”, he said. He noted that with this development, Guyana has been recognized for the role it plays in keeping its forest intact.

The decision about which countries will receive initial funding came at a two-day meeting in Paris of the FCPF Steering Committee. The statement noted that the committee was made up of an equal number of developing and industrialized countries, plus observers from international organizations, non-governmental institutions, and forest-dependent indigenous peoples and other forest dwellers. The committee was assisted in its decision by an independent Technical Advisory Panel comprised of experts in different technical fields and different regions of the world.

The nine industrialized countries that formalized their participation in the partnership were also present at the Paris meeting. They include Australia, Finland, France (the French Development Agency), Japan, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. “Together, they have committed to contribute about US$82 million to the FCPF. More contributions from the public and private sector are expected in the coming months”, the statement said.

The release quoted Manager of the World Bank’s Carbon Finance Unit, Joelle Chassard as stating that “Deforestation and forest degradation together are the second leading man-made cause of global warming.

They are responsible for about 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and the main source of national emissions in many developing countries.

For that reason, we have been eager to initiate this partnership and assist countries while building a body of knowledge on how best to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by protecting forests and helping the people who benefit from them.”

Representing the first donor to the facility, Australia, Robin Davies, Assistant Director-General, Sustainable Development Group, AusAID said that the FCPF is an important mechanism for giving effect to what was agreed at the Bali climate change meeting in 2007. He asserted that donors and developing countries should work together on approaches to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.

“The selection of this initial group of developing country partners is an important first step in improving global understanding of ways to reduce forest carbon emissions and lift forest-dependent communities out of poverty”, he stated.

The statement stressed that the grant money being provided to the first 14 developing countries in the FCPF will help them to prepare for future systems of positive incentives for REDD, in particular by establishing emissions reference levels, adopting REDD strategies, and designing monitoring systems. It added that developing countries have expressed a strong interest in participating in the FCPF and it is expected that more countries will receive support in the coming months.

At their meeting last December in Bali, the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change agreed to start demonstration activities on REDD. The FCPF, which was announced by the World Bank at the Bali Conference, will help to finance some of these demonstration activities, the statement said.

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7 Responses to “Guyana in forest carbon first”

Satish
on July 24th, 2008 5:56 am

THAT Guyana, has been selected to receive money for combating tropical deforestation and climate change is very welcome and necessary news.
Countries like Brazil are cutting down their forests to create financial wealth and if Guyana receives this money, it may go some way to convince its Government not to follow the example of Brazil etc.

No specific information has been given on how much money Guyana is likely to receive and nothing has been mentioned if there are any conditions attached to receiving this money.

Perhaps the SN news sleuths could help us here.

[Reply to this]
bgsbny
on July 24th, 2008 9:02 am

…….. is Brazil ,, a member of the group who is paying for the green house gases since they r a major contributor to the global pollution by the unsupervised,, mining,, logging,, farming,, and all the other destruction of the Amazon forest ,, which just happens to be part of their back yard ??????????????????,,,,,,,,,

[Reply to this]
Wiffy
on July 24th, 2008 10:20 am

Y’all stop being so sensational and ill-informed. Brazil still has more than 50 percent forest - it contributes more to mitigating GHG than any other industralized country (except Russia).

Note that the article does not say how much money Guyana is getting or for what specifically it is receiving the money. I assure you - the monies is not to retain all its forests (there has been no valuation done)!

[Reply to this]
rwilliams
on July 24th, 2008 2:30 pm

This money should go firstly, towards the development of those poor and vulnerable communities and individuals, who are directly dependent on Guyana’s forest and its resources for their economic survival and daily living.
Members of these communites should be helped with this money to establised micro and medium businesses, indigenous to, and helpful to their natural environment.
This money should not be pocketed by the political administration for its narrow political and propaganda objectives.

[Reply to this]
gtbeat
on July 24th, 2008 6:23 pm

Congrats to President Jagdeo on his effort to have countries receive financial incentives that protect their rainforest.

[Reply to this]
rwilliams
In reply to the above comment on July 24th, 2008 8:30 pm:
Congrats should also go out to all the other advocates, environmental organisations and political leaders in the global community, on their collective efforts, to have countries receive financial incentives that protect their rainforest.
Many of these organisations and individuals have been advocating for decades, long before the present environmental crisis, to bring about the above and other initiatives, for sustainable development of the world’s natural resources.
The early pioneers of this movement should be given special tribute.

[Reply to this]
Lawnman
on July 25th, 2008 4:36 am

Well Guyana you will get a share of US$84M and what that share will be is still unknown. If all fourteen countries get an equal share of this generous offer they would each receieve about US$5.8M.

Now lets average Guyana’s population at about 800,000. What would that mean for every man, woman and child in the country? US$5,800,000 divided by 800,000 = US$7.25 each. I know if I worked this figure out precisly it would give each person a few cents more, but I just wanted to keep it simple.

So the rich economies of this world that are so concerned for our planet, whilst at the same time contributing all the pollution are willing to pay poorer economies just US7.25 per head of population to save our planet. In the UK they spend more on their family pets per day.

This offer just serves to hold back development of poorer economies, and to stop them from using their natural resources to improve living standards for their nation. Resources which they will plunder at some future date.

Just look at Brazil, India, China and many Eastern European nations now getting in the mix for the worlds riches. The’re building roads (not dust tracks), houses (not shacks), power stations and all the things their nation needs to thrive.

This is not a good deal for you Guyana, use all your available resources for your own future developement and don’t just look over the border at (Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina and the rest of them) to see what a better life is all about.

These rich nations aren’t going to stop developing further by not using up the what’s left of the worlds natural resources, Your recources.

[Reply to this]