Samuel Abu Jinapor, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources for Ghana, has issued a resounding appeal to global leaders to augment their financial support for forest initiatives in order to address the triple planetary crises posed by climate change.
Mr. Jinapor stated at the 19th Session of the United Nations Forum on Forests at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA, that an urgent re-examination of forest financing options is necessary to stimulate investment efforts towards achieving globally agreed-upon goals on forests, climate change, and biodiversity, given the capacity of forests to combat the triplet planetary crises.
Established in 2000, the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) functions as a Commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) with the purpose of advancing the objectives of sustainable development, conservation, and management across all forest varieties.
We're now on WhatsApp. Click here to join.
Additionally, it serves to fortify enduring political dedication to the objectives. The Forum, which meets annually to assess the status of work, adopt decisions, and make commitments towards achieving its objectives, is composed of every UN member state.
Commencing on May 6, 2024, the 19th Session of the Forum is conducting a midterm evaluation of the international arrangements on forests’ implementation.
The Forum convened a High-Level Ministerial Segment and Forest Partnership Dialogue on May 9th, with the subject matter being “Forest-Based Solutions to the Triple Planetary Crises: An Emphasis on Humans, Science, and Technology.”
In his address to the Forum, Mr. Jinapor lamented the ongoing deforestation that occurs worldwide, in spite of the growing international awareness and comprehension of environmental issues and the forests’ potential to aid in resolving these issues. The World Resources Institute estimates that the loss of Tropical Primary Forests in 2023 was equivalent to 2.4 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide emissions and 3.7 million hectares.
It is estimated that some US$393billion is required, annually, to save the world’s forests. While referring to those staggering statistics, Mr. Jinapor emphasised the need for global leaders to take urgent and collaborative action to save the world’s forests, the planet, and livelihoods of 1.6 billion people who depended on the forest resources for survival.
The Minister stated that Ghana, under the stewardship of President Akufo-Addo, had taken several initiatives intended to protect the forests and conservation.
Those actions included the Ghana Forest Plantation Strategy, the Green Ghana Project, and the Ghana REDD+ Strategy.
Mr. Jinapor said developing countries that hosted some 45 percent of the global forests were confronting enormous challenges in protecting and conserving the forest resources, particularly financial challenges.
Ghana, he said, had been expending her limited resources on sustainable forest management due to the importance the Government affixed to them. The Minister lamented the continuous default by developed nations to honour their commitments to support developing countries in sustainable forest management.
