Baku, Nov 22 (IANS): At the COP29 summit in Baku, Britain on Friday pledged £239 million to tackle deforestation in countries, including Colombia and Indonesia, recognising the critical role of forests in those countries as “carbon sinks” that absorb more CO2 from the atmosphere annually than the UK and the US emit combined.

The last government’s commitment to £11.6bn of climate finance from 2021-22 to 2025-26 will continue to be honoured. This includes at least £3 billion on nature, from which £1.5 billion will be dedicated to protecting and restoring forests.

Halting and reversing forest loss is essential to keeping global heating under 1.5 degrees Celsius, delivering the UK’s global commitments to protect biodiversity, and meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Tropical forests are home to two-thirds of the world’s biodiversity and 80 per cent of global terrestrial biodiversity. Wildlife such as orangutangs, tigers and jaguars are under threat, and 1.6 billion people depend on forests for their livelihoods.

During COP29 in Baku, the government highlighted the value of forests in ensuring a liveable climate, where people, animals and flora can thrive. The pledge was made alongside representatives of the presidencies for COP29 in Azerbaijan and COP30 in Brazil.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: “Forests are the lungs of our planet -- without them climate security is impossible. We’re determined to play our part in mobilising finance to protect and restore global forests in these critical years for climate action.

“The climate crisis has no borders and these issues impact people back home in the UK -- we're already seeing the damage flooding and record heatwaves can do to businesses and the most vulnerable in our communities.

“Providing this funding now helps prevent the escalating costs of climate catastrophe at home and abroad, this is what the UK means by climate leadership.”

The £239 million funding announced comprises £188 million funding to the Scaling Climate Action by Lowering Emissions (SCALE) programme, to support the development of high-integrity forest carbon markets to ensure the buying and selling of carbon credits to drive emission reductions. This comes as the UK government confirms it intends to improve the integrity and use of voluntary carbon and nature markets.

A sum of £48 million for blended finance to unlock private investment in sustainable forest enterprises across the tropical forest belt. The Mobilising Finance for Forests programme provides financing to companies and investors to encourage them to invest more in activities that protect and restore forests.

Also £3 million for the UNFCCC to help countries protect their forests and realise their full climate change mitigation potential by reducing deforestation, restoring forests and providing benefits to local communities that depend on forests.

These measures will unlock private and public financing to safeguard forest ecosystems, drive restoration efforts, and create sustainable opportunities for the communities who rely on them. This also reflects the government’s commitment to the COP26 forest pledge, which aims to reverse forest loss by 2030.

The government has also announced 20 projects which will receive funding from Round One of the Ocean Community Empowerment and Nature (OCEAN) Grants Programme. These projects will deliver lasting change to the marine environment and coastal communities across the world.