Gabon becomes the first African country to get paid by the Central African Forest Initiative (CAFI) to reduce its carbon emissions.
Norway through the Central African Forest Initiative (CAFI), has handed over £12m of its 10-year long £126m reward deal if Gabon meets its targets to further cut carbon emissions in half by 2025. Gabon’s forests cover 88 percent of the country and are home to unique wildlife including 60 percent of the world’s remaining forest elephants. The trees absorb a total of 127 million tonnes of CO2 every year, the equivalent of removing 30 million cars from the world’s roads.
“This is the first time an African country has been rewarded for reducing forest-related emissions at the national level,” says Sveinung Rotevatn, Norway’s Minister of Climate and Environment.