Donor funding for tenure and forest guardianship by Indigenous Peoples, Afro-descendant Peoples, and local communities increased by a third over the last eight years, though few resources directly reached on-the-ground organisations, a report has found.
Between 2020 and 2023, annual payments worldwide averaged $517 million, a 36% growth from the previous four-year period, according to an analysis published by NGOs Rainforest Foundation Norway (RFN) and Rights and Resources Initiative.
Funding mainly went towards Asia and Africa, with that of the latter surpassing flows towards Latin America for the first time in 2023. However, total funding levels were insufficient, it said.
“The tenure rights of Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and Afro-descendant Peoples are inextricably linked to the health and resilience of key ecosystems and carbon stores. Yet, efforts to strengthen them receive only a fraction of total donor funding for climate and conservation solutions,” said the report.
While governments and multilateral donors made up the bulk of financial flows towards communities, funding from private foundations has ramped up since 2020, accounting for 17% of total disbursements.
As much as 72% of the overall increase was driven by the Forest Tenure Funders Group (FTFG), comprised of 25 donors, which committed to providing $1.7 billion in total between 2021 and 2025.
The group included the Ford Foundation, the Bezos Earth Fund, and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, as well as the governments of the US, UK, Germany, Norway, and the Netherlands.
“Foundations and bilateral donors scaled up their disbursements significantly in 2021, the first year of the pledge. In 2021, major philanthropic contributors like Bezos Earth Fund and Ford Foundation individually disbursed more than the total among private donors the year before,” the report said.
“Importantly, the positive trend also extends to non-FTFG donors. Multilateral funders, who were not part of the pledge, have also increased their funding since 2021. This change is likely reflective of the broader recognition among the donor community of the crucial role of collective rightsholders in conserving forests and other vital ecosystems.”
Global annual disbursements to Indigenous Peoples’, Afro-descendant Peoples’, and local communities’ tenure and forest guardianship. Source: RFN/Rights and Resources Initiative
ENHANCING PARTICIPATION
However, existing financing mechanisms often fail to channel resources directly towards community-led initiatives, with most large programmes implemented by consulting firms, governments, multilateral institutions, or international conservation organisations.
Direct funding is more likely to come through tailored grant schemes that support small-scale projects, such as the Small Grants Programme developed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
“There is no evidence indicating a systematic change in funding modalities or more direct donor funding to Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and Afro-descendant Peoples organisations,” the report said.
“Funding for community-led projects to secure rights and conserve forests continues to meet only a fraction of the total demand. Evidence from public data shows that existing mechanisms have been able to meet at most 30% of proposals received.”
In recent months, pressure has mounted to enhance the active participation of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in the financing mechanisms developed to address the biodiversity crisis.
A heated debate has also emerged in the voluntary biodiversity credit space, with the Community Advisory Panel of the UN-backed Biodiversity Credit Alliance spearheading efforts to bring attention to the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in the emerging market.
The newly-established Global Biodiversity Framework Fund (GBFF), administrated by the GEF, recently committed to channelling at least 20% of its funding to Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
Half the initial $40-mln pledge approved last month by the fund will support conservation, restoration, sustainable use, and biodiversity management actions by Indigenous Peoples and local communities. The steering committee of one of these projects will include members from the Indigenous Peoples’ organisations, the GEF secretariat told Carbon Pulse in March.
Under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) agreed in 2022, countries committed to recognising Indigenous rights and territories while taking action to protect at least 30% of the world’s land and sea by 2030.
By Sergio Colombo – sergio@carbon-pulse.com
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