France pays Congo, Papua New Guinea $150

France pays Congo, Papua New Guinea $150 million to save forests

By : AFP

Date: 2 Dec 2023

France's President Emmanuel Macron (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP)

France’s President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a press conference at the COP28 United Nations climate summit in Dubai on December 2, 2023. – The COP28 conference opened on December 1 with an early victory as nations agreed to launch a “loss and damage” fund for vulnerable countries devastated by natural disasters. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP)

France agreed Saturday to pay Papua New Guinea $100 million and the Republic of Congo $50 million to protect their forests.

President Emmanuel Macron said he hoped to conclude a similar $60 million deal with DR Congo as he announced the partnerships at the UN’s COP28 climate talks in Dubai.

“Nature is the best technology available to capture and store CO2,” he said, adding that “we have to remunerate countries when they actively protect these forests”.

The move comes a day after Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva appealed for the creation of a $250 billion fund to save tropical forests, which would pay 80 countries for their preservation efforts.