Sierra Leone Telegraph: 25 September 2025:
The Forest and Climate Leaders’ Partnership (FCLP) – a focused effort of 34 governments committed to maintaining high-level political leadership on forests – two days ago launched the ‘Forest Finance Roadmap for Action’, in collaboration with the Government of Brazil and with support from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
Launched during Climate Week NYC in service of the COP30 Action Agenda, the Roadmap sets out six priority solutions to help halt and reverse forest loss by 2030. It also responds to new UNEP analysis released today, which estimates an annual forest finance gap of $66.8 billion in tropical countries.1
The Forest Finance Roadmap for Action marks the first time that governments from across the Global North and Global South have come together around a shared vision to unlock and coordinate finance globally.
The framework is aligned with the COP30 Presidency Priorities and translates the momentum from high-level commitments – including the COP26 Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration to halt and reverse forest loss by 2030 – into priority action areas that can be realised in Belém and beyond.
UK Climate Minister, Katie White, said: “Forests are the lifeblood of our planet – supporting food security, tackling climate change and protecting biodiversity. The UK is proud to support this new framework which will align global efforts to protect forests and will unlock finance at scale.
With just two months until COP30, the UK is stepping up on climate action so we can tackle deforestation to protect our children and grandchildren from the climate crisis.”
Guyana Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Outar Bharrat, M.P., said: “We strongly welcome this new forest finance paper. It underlines that real solutions are already within our reach, with a menu of options that can move forward together at speed. If we want forests to stay standing, finance must be reliable and fair, so that communities and countries can make choices for the long term.
“Stability of finance is the bridge between ambition and action — and through the vital work of the FCLP and our partnerships with Brazil and others, we can help turn the menu of options into results and give the world a real chance of halting and reversing forest loss by 2030.”
With five years until 2030, the six solutions are designed to provide ministers, government officials, the private sector and civil society with a comprehensive plan, including highlighting active initiatives already in place that are ready to scale.
Establish and scale innovative financial mechanisms:
- Expand demand for high-integrity jurisdictional forest credits (JREDD+): Voluntary and compliance markets could deliver $3-6 billion annually by 2030.
- Establish the Tropical Forests Forever Facility (TFFF): Designed to create long-term payments for standing forests, with the potential to generate up to $4 billion annually by 2030.
Mobilise private investment:
- Accelerate the forest bioeconomy: $5 billion in public and concessional finance could unlock $15 billion annually to invest in sustainable-based forest enterprises.
- Redirect supply chain finance: Aligning agricultural and other private investments with forest goals, including increased disclosure of forest-related risks, could mobilise $10 billion annually by 2030.3
Align fiscal policies
- Mobilise public finance: Shifting only a small portion of subsidy structures and national budgets to align with land and forest objectives could unlock $8 billion.4
- Manage sovereign debt to reward resilience: By 2030, redirecting only 1 per cent of current debt service payments towards investments in forests could generate $4.9 billion per year.5
The economic figures on each initiative highlighted in the Roadmap are conservative estimates of what these solutions could deliver by 2030. With further innovation and investment, the roadmap’s solutions can unlock even greater flows of finance needed to halt and reverse forest loss.
The framework demonstrates that forest preservation and economic development are complementary, not competing, objectives. It highlights how forest finance can support forest bio-economies that create jobs, strengthen livelihoods, and drive long-term growth while keeping forests standing. The roadmap also highlights countries that are already demonstrating progress:
- Costa Rica and Guyana are channelling revenue from carbon credits to scale up conservation efforts, increasing resilience and supporting Indigenous communities.
- Kenya is advancing the use of sustainably produced wood in green construction for low-carbon, resilient development.
- Brazil’s Plano Safra rural credit and financing mechanism offers reduced interest rates to producers that adopt sustainable agricultural practices.
- Uruguay launched the first Deforestation-Linked Sovereign Bond linking coupons to KPIs related to climate and deforestation.
Businesses also used the event to make announcements and share progress aligned with the Roadmap’s goals, including:
- The Brazil Restoration and Bioeconomy Finance Coalition (BRB Finance Coalition) announced that its members have committed to mobilising a total of $4.5 billion for forest restoration and bioeconomy projects throughout the country.
Read the ‘Forest Finance Roadmap for Action Report here
Be the first to comment