Climate Finance Fundamentals 5: Thematic Briefing - REDD+ Finance

Since 2008, over USD 4 billion has been pledged to multilateral climate funds that support efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation plus conservation (REDD+). Despite strong interest in the potential to harness market based mechanisms to support REDD+ programmes, the future of such mechanisms remains highly uncertain. The last few years have seen relatively stable approvals for REDD+, averaging USD 220 million over the last five years. Cumulatively, USD 2.4 billion has been approved for REDD+ activities since 2008, USD 260 million of which has been approved in 2018. The Amazon Fund with USD 717 million approved for 102 projects in Brazil and the Amazon biome remains the largest dedicated REDD+ fund. Multilateral climate funds are increasingly funding projects that support both adaptation and mitigation, so projects involving forests and land use are not always tagged as REDD+ projects. The Green Climate Fund, for example, has approved at least five projects involving forests and land use that are considered both adaptation and mitigation. Norway is the largest contributor of REDD+ finance, followed by the UK, Germany and the United States. There have been increasing efforts to support developing countries’ move beyond readiness and capacity building to demonstration programmes and emission reductions with payments based on verified results.