The Central African Forest Commission (COMIFAC) presents the financial benefits of its participation in the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 26). The result is the promise of double funding of more than 3 billion dollars, intended for the protection of Central African forests. An unprecedented mobilization, which nevertheless remains insignificant compared to the financial needs necessary to protect the second green lung of the planet.
The participation of the Central African Forest Commission (COMIFAC) in the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference was successful. The sub-regional organization, responsible for the protection of Central African forests, has achieved an unprecedented mobilization of funds. That is, a double funding of more than 3 billion dollars for the protection of Central African forests. “A collective announcement waś made for specific funding for the protection and sustainable management of the Congo Basin forests for an amount of 1.5 billion dollars for the period 2021-2025. Another announcement, more general on tropical forests, including those of Central Africa, concerned́ the mobilization of 1.7 billion dollars as support to indigenous peoples and local communities in their efforts to protect tropical forests” details COMIFAC in its communiqué published on December 20, 2021.
For the current president of COMIFAC, Jules Doret Ndongo, “this unprecedented pledge of funding represents immense hope for the forests of Africa. This is why I would like to express my sincere thanks to our partners who are committed to working with us. COMIFAC also salutes the work of its member states, namely Burundi, Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe and Chad, and its technical and financial partners.
COMIFAC calls for $200 million for 5 years of action
These promises of climate financing made at COP 26 remain marginal, however, given the financing needs necessary to protect the forests of the Congo Basin, the second largest forest on the planet. Today, COMIFAC is calling for $200 million to carry out a 5-year action plan, which includes the protection of protected areas and the financing of numerous local projects.
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To reach this threshold of climate financing, COMIFAC’s member countries want to form a “Finance Task Force”. A financial action group whose goal is to mobilize funds for the effective management of biodiversity in the Congo Basin. This is the whole point of the workshop held on November 18, 2019 in Douala, Cameroon. Experts and focal points of COMIFAC were trained in the mobilization of international funds, in order to be more effective in the field. The projects mentioned by COMIFAC include sustainable forest management, the fight against poaching and the improvement of living conditions of local populations.
Boris Ngounou
