Performance of the Tropical Forests forever Fund is seen as a thermometer of Brazilian protagonism in world environmental negotiations
On the eve of COP30, the Brazilian government has a project in focus: the Tropical Forests Forever Fund (TFFF)a project to protect the planet’s tropical forests, such as . On the launch day, this Thursday (6), the Brazilian project raised more than R$ 5.5 billion, more than half of the target set by the Minister of Finance, . According to him, the initial stage of the project aims to raise R$10 billion in investment.
The objective is to raise US$125 billion (R$668 billion, at current prices) from governments and private investors, aiming to financially reward countries that keep their forests preserved. The TFFF seeks to mobilize around US$4 billion per year, until the total amount is reached. This is one of the main initiatives led by Brazil in global climate discussions.
With COP30 scheduled for November 10th to 21st, in Belém (PA), the TFFF’s performance is seen as a barometer of Brazilian protagonism in the world’s environmental negotiations.
What is TFFF?
The TFFF was created by the Brazilian government with the aim of mobilizing international resources for the preservation of tropical forests. The fund was presented for the first time at COP28, in 2023, by diplomat André Corrêa do Lago, current president of COP30, and has been treated as one of the government’s main flags (PT) in the search for climate finance.
During his most recent speech, President Lula reinforced the call for other countries to contribute to the fund, highlighting that the preservation of forests is fundamental in combating climate change. It had the support of 53 nations, but initially only four – in addition to Brazil – invested.
How will the Forest Fund work?
The first point of the Tropical Forests forever Fund is to raise investment for the project. If the target of US$125 billion is reached, the TFFF will become the largest conservation fund ever created. Capital can come through governments, companies and foundations, and of the stipulated total, US$25 billion would come from partner countries, such as Brazil, Norway, Germany, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates e Chinain addition to large international foundations. Value would be a kind of guarantee to attract another US$ 100 billion in investments.
Brazil announced an investment of US$ 1 billion, Norway contributed US$ 3 billion, Germany is expected to take a position on Friday (7), while the United Kingdom, which despite being part of the creation of the TFFF, said it will not invest. The World Bank will be responsible for managing the resources, while the TFFF must take care of monitoring and distributing payments.
With the capital gained, it must be reinvested in projects with a higher rate of return, and the difference between what is paid to investors and what is obtained in these applications (the so-called spread) will be used to financially remunerate countries that preserve their tropical forests, in proportion to the area conserved.
The fund proposes that countries with large areas of tropical forest, such as Brazil, Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, be paid for the conservation of biomes. However, to receive the money, each country will need to show, based on satellite monitoring, that deforestation has remained below 0.5% per year.
