To protect and restore mangroves is a highly effective tool to mitigate climate change and the loss of nature. At COP28, Norway joins the Mangrove Alliance for Climate and endorses the goals under the Mangrove Breakthrough.
Photo: COP28 Presidency UAE
The Mangrove Alliance for Climate (MAC), which is spearheaded by the United Arab Emirates in partnership with Indonesia, promotes mangroves as a nature-based solution to climate change and works to reach the goals agreed under the Mangrove Breakthrough.
A nature and climate solution
Mangroves play a significant role in carbon sequestration, adaptation and reduced climate damage. Norway supports measures to protect and restore mangroves through bilateral forest partnerships, technical assistance and high-resolution satellite images.
Since Norway’s Climate and Forest Initiative (NICFI) was established in 2008, Norway have spent USD 5 billion in halting and reversing tropical forest loss. In several forest countries, Norway’s results-based payments for emissions reductions are reinvested in mangrove protection and rehabilitation.
Supporting Indonesia’s ambitions
Indonesia is home to the greatest expanse of mangroves in the world, and the government has made it a priority to protect and restore mangroves as part of their ambitious plan – FOLU Net Sink 2030 – for its forestry and other land use sector to become a net carbon sink by 2030. Norway is proud to support Indonesia’s FOLU Net Sink plan through the USD 156 million in results-based contributions provided to date. Norway has also previously supported Indonesia’s mangrove restoration efforts through the World Bank Mangroves for Coastal Resilience programme as well as through research and efforts to ensure inclusion of emissions reductions from mangrove protection and rehabilitation in the national forest inventory.
Collaborating on technology
Beyond our bilateral efforts, Norway is also through multilateral initiatives such as the UN-REDD programme and the World Banks Forest Carbon Partnership Facility supporting technical assistance and providing results-based finance to forest countries, including on mangroves.
Together with the Bezos Earth Fund, NICFI is also working towards launching a new phase of our Satellite Data Program to continue to offer high resolution satellite imagery of the tropics as a global public good. This will allow for enhanced monitoring of land use change, including in coastal areas and mangroves.
Aim & Objectives
The Mangrove Alliance for Climate (MAC) was launched in 2022 at COP27. The MAC seeks to scale up, accelerate conservation, restoration and growing plantation efforts of mangrove ecosystems for the benefit of communities globally, and recognize the importance of these ecosystems for climate change mitigation and adaption. Specifically, the members commit to plant, rehabilitate and restore mangroves within their country; as well as supporting others to do the same.
The goal under the Mangrove Breakthrough involves protecting and restoring 15 million hectares of mangroves globally, and stopping the destruction of mangroves by 2030, as well as mobilizing USD 4 billion for this purpose.