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The Prince’s Rainforests Project

An Emergency Package for Tropical Forests Presentation to European Capacity Building Initiative (ECBI) seminar Bonn, 7 June 2009 Paul McMahon. The Prince’s Rainforests Project.

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The Prince’s Rainforests Project

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  1. An Emergency Package for Tropical ForestsPresentation to European Capacity Building Initiative (ECBI) seminarBonn, 7 June 2009Paul McMahon

  2. The Prince’s Rainforests Project • Established in 2007 by The Prince of Wales to build consensus on the need for a new financing mechanism to slow tropical deforestation • Working with government, private sector and NGOs • Published report in March 2009: ‘An Emergency Package for Tropical Forests’ • On 1 April the Prince of Wales hosted a meeting of world leaders, who decided to establish an International Working Group, consisting of 33 countries, UN agencies and World Bank • Working Group will make interim report to G8 leaders summit (Jul ‘09) and final report to UN General Assembly (Sep ’09) and World Bank Annual Meeting (Oct ‘09)

  3. Principles behind our proposal Provide sufficiently strong financial incentives to Rainforest Nations to cover the opportunity costs of switching to a low-deforestation development trajectory Pay for performance at a national-level using simple, verifiable metrics (e.g. hectares of avoided deforestation per year) Respect national sovereignty of Rainforest Nations – allow them to develop and execute their own low carbon development plans Developed countries finance the mechanism, drawing on combined strength of public and private sectors (which could include issuing Rainforest Bonds) Create a light, temporary global institutional framework that coordinates multiple existing forest initiatives Facilitate and accelerate the transition to a long-term UNFCCC REDD solution Deliver significant reduction in deforestation quickly (i.e. within 2-3 years) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

  4. Annual payments for forest services, linked to proven results (hectares of deforestation avoided)

  5. Institutional arrangements in Rainforest Nations • Reducing deforestation requires involvement of all stakeholders in a country – central government, local government, private sector, local communities, indigenous peoples, etc • Special national funds could be established in each country, governed by boards containing central government, local government and civil society representatives • Multiple organisations would submit project proposals, receive funds and implement activities • Governments > changing policies, building institutions (on- or off-budget) • Civil society > community-level projects • Private sector > incentives and support to shift activities away from forests • Minimum design conditions would be required before countries participate • Consultation with forest dependent peoples when developing national low carbon development plans • Full transparency on use of funds, including external audits • Appeal mechanisms for local communities

  6. Donors (e.g. Norway) • Steering Committee (24) • Federal government • Amazon State govt.s • NGOs, Indigenous Peoples, Business Sector, Scientists Defines guidelines and criteria for projects Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) Hosts and manages fund • Technical Committee (6) • Scientists • Other experts Verifies avoided deforestation and emissions Project Implementers • Activities to reduce deforestation and support sustainable economic development, e.g. • Land tenure and territory planning • Environmental monitoring and control • Incentives for sustainable production • Federal government • Local government • Civil society • International NGOs • Private sector Independent Auditors Audits projects One example: the Amazon Fund Goal: reduce deforestation 80% by 2020 versus 1996-2005 average Amazon Fund

  7. New global architecture will also be needed • We propose creation of a ‘Tropical Forests Facility’. Its role would be to: • Negotiate agreements with Rainforest Nations • Raise finance from developed countries • Disburse annual payments • Coordinate global monitoring and verification system • This should be a light, temporary structure that leverages existing agencies and transitions into the long-term UNFCCC / REDD institutional architecture • Governance would include representatives from Rainforest Nations, donor countries, civil society, local communities and multi-lateral agencies • One idea is to establish a new, independent foundation, backed by governments and perhaps supported by the World Bank as Trustee • An example of this type of structure is the Global Fund to Fight Aids, TB and Malaria, headquartered in Geneva

  8. Compatability with RFM proposal • We propose national funding and decision-making hubs, with flexibility for on-budget and off-budget support – consistent with RFM approach • Reducing emissions from deforestation could count as one of the ‘thematic disbursement windows’ under RFM proposal • Emergency financing for tropical forests could be integrated into broader Climate Change Funds in forested countries • Our mechanism is designed to start immediately, outside of the UNFCCC architecture, but it could transition into RFM structures if they are established

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