WB, Germany launch fund vs deforestation

MANILA, Philippines — The World Bank and Germany have launched a new fund meant to support projects for stopping deforestation, restoring degraded lands, and improving livelihoods in poor rural communities. 

The multilateral development bank announced late Monday that the new fund, called PROGREEN, is receiving an initial 200 million euros seed fund from Germany, with the goal of eventually raising around $1 billion for the fund. 

“PROGREEN is an innovative way to create more sustainable and resilient landscapes and natural habitats,” said World Bank Group president David Malpass in a statement. 

 “The program brings together sectors that rarely coordinate in order to reduce deforestation and the degradation of forests and land. It aims for impact at scale, by supporting the shift from transactional project approaches to performance-based approaches focused on improving national policies. We are grateful to have committed partners such as Germany to help us achieve solutions for these pressing problems,” he added. 

Projects that will be supported under the fund include those aimed at addressing the decline in biodiversity, loss of forests, and deteriorating land fertility. 

World Bank said such projects will help countries meet their national and global Sustainable Development Goals and commitments, including poverty reduction, in a cost-effective manner.

It noted that forests and land-based ecosystems provide food, clean water, climate regulation, jobs and economic growth.  However, the world’s remaining forests and natural habitats are under increasing pressure, often with dire consequences for rural communities who depend on these resources for their livelihood and food.