Congo Brazzaville has recently set up a green climate fund, which will finance initiatives to fight and adapt to climate change at the national level. The text establishing, organising and operating this fund was adopted by the Council of Ministers on August 7, 2019 in Brazzaville.
Congolese have a new way to finance their efforts to fight or adapt to climate change. In accordance with the provisions of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the government of the Central African States has set up a National Green Economy System. It is a kind of “Green Climate Fund” at the national level. The fund should enable the Congo to mobilise financial resources, particularly at the local level and from external partners, to finance projects related to the conservation and protection of natural ecosystems.
According to the draft decree establishing this fund, which was adopted on the 7th of August 2019 by the Council of Ministers, the fund will be managed by the Prime Minister. The latter will be assisted in this mission by a technical coordination chaired by the Minister responsible for Regional Integration. Sector ministries will also be involved in the management of the fund, as will the ministry responsible for environmental protection.
Congo Brazzaville is well known in the fight against climate change
The establishment of this green economy system in Central Africa, under the Congo Brazzaville component, further strengthens the image of a country that is active on climate issues. On this front, this Central African country did not wait for the COP 21 resolutions of 2015 to embark on the fight against climate change.
As early as the 1980s, a law instituted November 6 in Congo Brazzaville as “National Tree Day”. In addition to this day, there are other important initiatives to preserve forest ecosystems, such as the National Afforestation and Reforestation Programme (Pronar), which aims to plant one million hectares of forest.
Thanks to these actions, Congo has maintained a forest cover representing 65% of the national territory. According to statistics presented by the President of the Republic, Denis Sassou N’guesso, during his speech at COP 21 in 2015 in Paris, Congo has the lowest deforestation rate in the world with 0.08%. Its 2.5 million hectares of certified forests are a carbon sink and biodiversity reservoir for the entire planet.
Boris Ngounou
