Indonesia supports more serious examination of interim forest finance
The fact that the scoping study and the workshop held in Jakarta have not only attracted the attention of extremely high-level government representatives but also inspired, arguably, the most respected government official in Indonesia to adopt the concepts and language used in the project is a strong and undeniable testimony of the need for and importance of this project.
Below is text from Dr Kuntoro’s speech:
“……On creating a demand for REDD+, underpinning Indonesian efforts is the Norway-Indonesia partnership, and the up to one billion dollars of catalysing funds for performance based payments to support REDD+. But this is still a small drop in the bucket compared to the value of supply chains tied to drivers of deforestation. Globally, the annual donor commitments for halting deforestation are at about $1.1 billion annually, while supply chains tied to deforestation are worth $135 billion. Indonesia supports more serious examination of interim forest finance, and the use of innovative financing to generate the required amount of funding to make REDD+ sustainable. Most importantly, we want to emphasise that these schemes MUST include strong, implementable, and enforceable safeguards. REDD in Indonesia is Beyond Carbon, more than forests. It is fundamentally about finding ways to materialize environmental protection and poverty alleviation. Communities are at the heart of it, and we see REDD+ as a means to enhance livelihoods, and build a more sustainable and equitable.”
Scoping study coverage
The scoping study report ‘Stimulating Interim Demand for REDD+ Emission Reductions: The Need for a Strategic Intervention from 2015 – 2020’ was picked up from various media channels wordwide including but not limited to: Reuters, Reuters US, RTCC, Business Green, Huffington Post, Mongabay, Climate Action, Ecosystem Marketplace, UN REDD and others. Only in the 1st quarter of 2014 total press pick-ups amounted to 39.