8 September 2021: Germany announced a significant new effort to protect the world's second-largest forest by contributing an additional €125 million (some US$ 148 million) to the CAFI Fund, making it one of the most significant contributions.
This announcement was made on Wednesday 8 September in Berlin at the Tropical Forest Symposium, at a time that just saw a strong international focus on nature and forests with the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille.
The German Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) Gerd Müller recalled: "It is high time to act in a concerted manner at the international level: at the next COPs in Kunming and Glasgow, the preservation of tropical forests must be placed at the centre of political attention."
"Forests are important carbon sinks and should receive a fair share of climate and biodiversity funds. We must find an equitable agreement between tropical forest countries and the international community," the Minister added.
By increasing its current contribution of $93 million by $148 million, Germany is sending a strong message as Chair of the CAFI Board. At the upcoming conferences of the parties to the Climate (COP 26) and Biodiversity (COP 15) conventions, Germany intends to present and discuss approaches to forest protection with key multi- and bilateral actors.
As Chair and one of the six contributors to the CAFI fund and current facilitator of the Congo Basin Forest Partnership, Germany has emphasized the need for civil society participation and restoration of forest ecosystems.
Central Africa is one of the last regions in the world to absorb more carbon than it emits. Its forest, the second largest in the world, sucks in nearly 1.5 billion tonnes of CO2 out of the atmosphere each year, or 4% of global emissions. Home to more than 10,000 plant and animal species, many of them endemic, this rainforest is an indispensable source of food, energy, shelter, and spirituality in countries with the lowest human development indexes and the largest number of people in urgent need of food security assistance in the world.
Central Africa's rainforest is under increasing pressure. While trends and causes vary widely across national contexts, forest losses represent more than 6 million hectares of primary tropical forest since 2001, equivalent to about 6 million rugby fields, and the trend is accelerating considerably.
CAFI supports six Central African countries in the difficult choices necessary when committing to pursue green, low emission development pathways that combine economic growth with the preservation of forests and other natural resources.
CAFI's support combines on-the-ground investments (30 programmes throughout six partner countries) with high-level policy dialogue with countries’ leaders. German embassies in the region are mobilizing to carry out this dialogue with other donors such as Norway, the Netherlands, the European Union, France, South Korea and the United Kingdom.
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