Conserving Forests to Reduce Human-induced Green House Gas Emissions in Developing Countries

I participated in the recently concluded UN Climate Change talks in Cancun (Mexico) for a week (29 November – December 6, 2010), as an NGO Observer where I took particular interest in the negotiations and discussions regarding Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation and enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries (REDD+). This is because REDD+ has been a progressive discussion item compared to other areas from Copenhagen, and continued to receive a lot of (donor) attention in the build-up to Cancun. This was evidenced by the high number of side events in Cancun that sought to show case their experiences, projects and discourses from all around the world. Hence, it is not surprising that it is one of the agreed areas in the ‘Cancun agreements’. Despite this, from the sides, REDD+ still needs to address fears, expectations and critiques from a wide range of actors.

REDD+: Silver bullet or Trojan horse?

REDD+ is a mechanism to create an incentive for developing countries to

protect, better manage and wisely use their (tropical) forest resources, thus

contributing to the global fight against climate change as well as national development. This has radical implications for the ways in which tropical forests are valued internationally. Forest assets which were formerly unattractive are now the subject of increased attention from Northern and Southern governments, financial markets and international NGOs. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), pilot REDD projects in 40 developing countries are already underway as a result of the 2009 Climate change talks in Copenhagen. According to UN-REDD, REDD+ strives to make forests more valuable standing than cut down, by creating a financial value for the carbon stored in standing trees. In the long term, payments for verified emission reductions and removals, either market or fund based, provide an incentive for REDD+ countries to further invest in lowcarbon development and a healthier, greener tomorrow.

          To the contrary, emissions from deforestation and degradation through agricultural expansion, conversion to pastureland, infrastructure development, destructive logging, fires and other practices account for nearly 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions. But REDD+ critiques like the Global Justice Ecology Project view this initiative as a ‘trojan horse’, despite its appeal on face value. Among others, REDD+ will restrict access to forests for livelihoods and cultural practices by having forests commoditized resulting in landlessness and evictions. In addition, REDD+ will degrade livelihoods as the lure of the ‘market’ will force forest dwellers to succumb to external pressures to degrade and destroy their own homes. But the Cancun agreement does not address whether market-based mechanisms such as carbon trading can be used to finance REDD+. Instead, it includes new decisions that encourage donors and the private sector to continue deploying billions of dollars for countries that lower rates of deforestation.

On the other hand, moderate actors like Women Organising for Change in

Agriculture and Natural Resource Management (WOCAN) insist that

implementation of this initiatives meets some basic standards so as to mitigate the anticipated negative effects like those being highlighted by Global Justice Ecology project. Working in over 80 countries in the Global South, WOCAN is part of a new IUCN–led gender initiative that aims to ensure that women are integral part of the negotiations on REDD+. Women make up 70% of the world’s poor, providing up to 90% of the food in forest dependent communities, depend on forest resources for gathering fuel wood, forest fruits, vegetables and medicines. Hence in many rural societies, it is only women who have accumulated the traditional knowledge about food and other household products that forests supply. In this regard, the REDD+ gender initiative is raising a ‘red flag’ for REDD+: that women are again the missing link despite their critical role in climate action. “Donors sponsoring REDD initiatives do not mainstream gender in projects on the ground even though they have mandate – and hence obligation to do so”, says Lorena Aguilar, IUCN’s Global Senior Advisor on Gender.

African Delegates on REDD+: Differing expectations and interpretation

Much as the negotiations were in progress, a snapshot of the views from African delegates that I interviewed indicated a differing level of understanding and expectation regarding REDD+. A delegate from

Cote d’Ivoire, who preferred anonymity, noted that REDD+ is very

new. “All I know is that REDD+ is about forest conservation and I come to Cancun to have more information about it’, she added. But Edi – a biomass researcher from the same country feels that REDD+ should be put as part of a coherent global forest management strategy, not a standalone initiative in order to benefit Africa.

Jumah working on a REDD+ pilot project in Zanzibar (Tanzania) feels that somehow the process is in the right direction with eight community based pilot projects already underway in Tanzania. He has hope that in less than five years’ time, positive results will be harnessed that will inform further development and fine–tuning

of REDD+ implementation in Tanzania. But he cautions that all this depends on the ongoing international negotiations and expressed the wish for more community based approaches to REDD+ in addition to the focus on scientific issues in development of the relevant strategies.

A delegate from Malawi expressed ignorance about REDD+ and noted that from past presentations, it would appear like REDD+ might make people poorer. ‘Politics of who benefit, that is played out by developed countries and development agencies will determine

our fate’, he summed it up. From neighboring Zimbabwe, a delegate expressed optimism that for dry Africa, REDD+ is the way forward just like the tropical forest countries (like in the Congo basin) have hitherto benefited from the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). ‘REDD+ is better for us’, he noted.

Despite this polarised debate, the Cancun talks reached an agreement on REDD+. This is expected to revitalize and increase funding flows to support REDD+ readiness and invigorate donor pledges for REDD+ that now amount close to US$5 billion for early actions until 2012.

 Cautious optimism on REDD+

But negotiators, decision makers and implementers of REDD+ need to take caution, as we look forward to the implementation process leading up to the next Conference of Parties scheduled to take place in South Africa, from November 28 to December 10, 2011. From the above experiences, I strongly feel that a lot more needs to

be done to address the lingering fears related to fairness and transparency in sharing the benefits accruing from REDD+, securing participation women and Southern governments in decisions related to REDD+ implementation.

 (Kimbowa is Global South Development Magazine’s Country Correspondent for Uganda

and can be reached at kimbowarichard@yahoo.com)