Forests management in the context of climate change

Workshop of the IKI Peru interface project

In Peru, greenhouse gas emissions are largely due to the loss of forests. It is therefore important to find ways to restore forests and manage them sustainably to be able to benefit from the environmental services they provide. It is against this background that the IKI Peru interface organized the second thematic meeting.

This event was held in December 2022 with participants from different IKI projects working in Peru and their counterparts. 

The work of Peruvian public institutions

The first session of the meeting focused on learning about the work of Peruvian public institutions in relation to forest management and conservation in the context of climate change. 

The main institutions that presented Peru's work and priorities in forest management and conservation were

• the National Forest Conservation Program for Climate Change Mitigation of the Ministry of the Environment (MINAM), 
• the Forestry Service of Flora and Wildlife (SERFOR) of the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation (MIDAGRI) and
• the Natural Protected Areas Management Directorate of the National Service of State Protected Areas (SERNANP) of MINAM 

The session began with a presentation by Rudy Valdivia, head of the Technical Unit of the National Forest Conservation Program for Climate Change Mitigation, who spoke about Conditional Direct Transfers (CDT) as an instrument for forest conservation and climate change adaptation.

This was followed by a presentation by Favio Ríos, General Director of Forestry and Wildlife Policy and Competitiveness of SERFOR, who explained how the promotion of sustainable forest management is an opportunity for development in the context of climate change.

The final presentation was given by Marco Arenas, head of the Functional Operational Unit for Participatory Management of the Natural Protected Areas Management Directorate of SERNANP, who spoke about natural protected areas as a strategy for participatory forest conservation. 

IKI´s project work on forest management in Peru

In the second part of the meeting, three projects shared their experiences related to forest conservation in the context of climate change, specifically on how their activities and results match with Peru’s priorities. It was also a way to expose their work and invite other projects to establish synergies or give continuity to what they have already started.

Jorge Saenz (Proforest), Peru coordinator of the IKI project "Linking supply chains with 'Zero Deforestation' and national climate mitigation initiatives", explained on how his project works with local stakeholders, the Peruvian government and multilateral organisations to develop and test approaches, in order to provide guidance on how to eliminate deforestation in supply chains through national policies and initiatives. 

Patricia Patrón, a specialist from MINAM's DGCCD (Directorate-General for Climate Change and Desertification), explained the progress and next steps of a project implemented by the MINAM and UNDP (DCI Stage 2 project). The Joint Declaration of Intent (JIU) is Peru's main agreement to implement the REDD+ phases. Its objective is to contribute to the reduction of deforestation in the Peruvian Amazon, thus contributing to Peru's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). It was signed in September 2014, between the Ministries of Environment of Peru, Norway and Germany. In 2021, by means of an addendum, the United Kingdom and USAID were incorporated and it was extended to 2025. The presentation highlighted how cooperation between Germany, Norway, the UK and the USA supports Peru in the field of forest management.

Iris Olivera, coordinator of the IKI project "Promoting indigenous forest conservation in the Ucayali region" together with Max Silva and Judith Nunta from the Regional Organization AIDESEP Ucayali (ORAU), explained how the project promoted the conservation of indigenous forests through the implementation of the Community Forest Management Technical Units. 

They also explained the role of indigenous forest conservationists in the Ucayali region. Their responsibility is to contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation by reducing deforestation on the land of indigenous communities and through the sustainable use of biodiversity.

Finding thematic synergies between IKI Peru projects

The IKI Peru interface has established the format “thematic meetings” to gather commissioners, partners and implementing organisations around different relevant topics for the cooperation.

The priorities, next steps and activities shared by the commissioners and the counterparts provide guidelines for IKI projects activities. The presentations, shared experiences, lessons learned and progress of the projects are inputs that serve to establish possible synergies and strengthen cooperation. 

This second thematic meeting took place within the framework of the IKI's knowledge management strategy. IKI has established interface projects in 14 priority countries that encourage exchange between all implementing organisations and IKI project partners in the country.