Why in the news?

  • The first State of Finance for Forests (SFF) report was recently released by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

State of Finance for Forests (SFF) – 2025

  • Institutions: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), UN-REDD, and the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF).
  • Objectives:
    • Provides the first global analysis of public and private financial flows to forests, using data for 2023, and projections through 2030 and 2050.
    • Aims to track progress toward the Rio Conventions (UNFCCC, CBD, UNCCD) through forest finance.
  • Findings of the Report:
    • Current Investment (2023)
      • Total forest finance: USD 84 billion.
      • Public finance: USD 77 billion (91 %).
      • Private finance: USD 7.5 billion (9 %).
      • Indicates heavy reliance on public funds.
    • Required Investment: To meet climate, biodiversity & land-restoration goals:
      • USD 300 billion / year by 2030 (≈ 3× current level).
      • USD 498 billion / year by 2050 (≈ 6× current level).
    • Financing Gaps & Inequities:
      • Only 17 % (≈ USD 12.9 billion) of domestic public spending reached 31 tropical forest countries.
      • Indigenous Peoples & Local Communities (IPLCs) received < 1 % (USD 362 million) of international forest finance.
      • Environmentally harmful subsidies: ≈ USD 406 billion (mainly agriculture).
      • Private credit to deforestation-risk firms: ≈ USD 8.9 trillion, dwarfing green investments.
  • India’s Role:
    • Recognised as a leader in domestic public investment for NbS.
    • Integrates forestry + climate + land-restoration goals through:
      • National REDD+ Strategy (2018).
      • Green India Mission and CAMPA Funds.
      • National Afforestation and Eco-Restoration programmes.
    • Demonstrates a whole-of-government approach linking finance and sustainable livelihoods.
  • Significance
    • Serves as a baseline for global forest-finance monitoring.
    • Will inform UNFF-21 (2026) deliberations.
    • Emphasises that tripling investment by 2030 is vital to harness forests’ potential for:
      • Climate mitigation,
      • Biodiversity conservation,
      • Sustainable development & livelihoods.