FRA Welcomes News Of Ghana Forestry Investment Approval
Ghana's Forest Investment Programme has won approval from the World Bank in a move welcomed by FRA.
Online, December 20, 2012 (Newswire.com) - Ghana's Forest Investment Programme has won approval from the World Bank in a move welcomed by Forestry Research Associates (FRA).
The approval means the African nation is one step closer to gaining the $50 million in funding it needs to help it implement climate change reduction strategies through the safeguarding of its forests. The cash will come from the Climate Investment Fund and will be used to help engage the local community in sustainable forestry management under the REDD+ reforestation scheme.
The approval has followed a lot of positive sounds from attendees at the recent Climate Investment Funds 2012 Partnership Forum, which took place in Istanbul. During the conference, similar funding packages were approved for Indonesia and Burkino Faso in a further attempt to safeguard some of the world's most vulnerable forests.
FRA's analysis partner, Peter Collins, stated, "It's very difficult to convince the world's poorest people that they will be better off if they leave their forests standing. It's all about providing incentives and this is where the funding comes in.
"The more people that see their standing forests as being more valuable in terms of carbon offsetting, than as timber, the better."
Musa Abu Juam, who represented Ghana at the Climate Forum, said the forum was possible due to "Deepening global understanding of linkages between climate change and development."
FRA explained that previous attempts to try to safeguard forests in Ghana have been met with problems due to insufficient incentives to either leave forests standing or manage forestry sustainably. "We think that sustainable forestry is something worth investing in and plantations run this way can be a great source of returns for ethical investors," added Mr Collins.
FRA, which is a research and analysis consultancy, supports sustainable forestry plantations run by firms like Greenwood Management in Brazil and Canada.