143 Million Bucks to Protect Indonesia’s Rain Forest and Fight Climate Change

Indonesia is setting up a new green fund to protect its rainforests, create a carbon trading program and tackle climate issues, as part of its Paris Agreement plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 29 percent by 2030.

The Southeast nation’s environment ministry launched an agency dedicated to managing funds for environmental reparation as well as teaching locals to prevent further damage. The agency is to begin early 2020 with an initial finance of around 143 million dollars.

This year, after almost a decade, Norway finally made the first payment of its 1-billion-dollar pledge as a result of Indonesia’s actions to curb emissions and cut deforestation rates.

Vegard Kaale, Norway’s ambassador to Indonesia, explains that the country – known to be the biggest producer of palm oil – may receive further compensation for keeping its forest standing, adding,  “The income from reduced deforestation could benefit provinces and communities that are both producing emissions reductions and preserving biodiversity and are most at risk of the impacts of climate change.”