NOK 500 million to forest and climate efforts in Tanzania

Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg announced in Dar es Salaam today that Norway is prepared to grant NOK 500 million to Tanzania over the next five years, for a partnership agreement to enhance forest and climate efforts. Experience from such a partnership will be a vital contribution in the process towards a new international climate agreement.

Deforestation in Tanzania is among Africa’s largest in extension, only surpassed by deforestation in Sudan and Zambia. Emissions caused by this deforestation have been estimated to represent 100 million tons per year, corresponding to approximately twice as much as Norway’s total annual greenhouse gas emissions.

“Deforestation represents around 20 per cent of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions. In order to achieve sufficient reductions in emissions, we must see to it that efforts against deforestation become part of the next international climate agreement”, Prime Minister Stoltenberg said. “One condition will be that we succeed in finding good and standardised measuring methods. A vital element in Norway’s forest campaign will thus be to contribute to competence building and the development of measuring methods for deforestation”, Stoltenberg said.

At the UN climate conference in Bali in December 2007 new guidelines for pilot projects against deforestation were negotiated under Norway’s leadership. The new partnership between Norway and Tanzania represents one of the first of its kind since the Bali conference.

The partnership agreement was signed in Dar es Salaam today by Norway’s Minister of Environment and Development Erik Solheim and Tanzania’s Minister of the Environment Batilda Salha Burian.

As part of the new partnership with Tanzania, Norway will support research, education and the development of pilot areas for reduced deforestation. Norway will also develop technologies and methods for the measuring and verification of carbon level changes. Also, Norway will contribute to strengthening responsible institutions and to review policies in order to find possible improvements.

Following the signing of the partnership treaty Stoltenberg and Solheim visited Ruvu Forest Reserve outside Dar es Salaam. Here they met with farmers working on the Ruvu Fuelwood Project, a programme supported by Norway. Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs.