At the climate summit in Glasgow in 2021, Norway and several other donors pledged USD 1.7 billion to strengthen the rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities to tropical forests. That goal has now been reached.
Photo: Ahtziri Gonzalez/CIFOR
A new report presented during the UN High-Level Week in New York shows that the pledge made by many countries and donors has been fulfilled.
‘Delivering on this promise ahead of schedule shows that we take our climate commitments seriously. It strengthens trust between donors, tropical forest countries, and Indigenous peoples, and provides necessary momentum heading into upcoming climate summits’, said Minister of Climate and Environment Andreas Bjelland Eriksen.
The initiative was launched in response to the fact that less than one percent of climate financing between 2011 and 2020 went directly to Indigenous peoples and local communities, despite their more effective and cost-efficient forest stewardship.
The report also shows that:
- 31% of the funds have gone toward securing Indigenous land rights globally, while 69% have supported regional and local projects.
- Latin America receives the most (58%), followed by Africa (23%) and Asia (18%).
- Direct support to Indigenous and community organizations has increased significantly—from 22 organizations in 2021 to 112 in 2024, and from 3% of all support in 2021 to 8% in 2024.
Norway has supported Indigenous peoples in Brazil for over 40 years and provides support to organizations in Asia and Africa. The support is given directly to Indigenous groups and through funds and organizations closely connected to them.
In recent years, there have been several important victories for Indigenous peoples in tropical forest countries. In Brazil and Peru, new Indigenous territories have been recognized, in Colombia, Indigenous municipalities now make up 40% of the Amazon region, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Indigenous peoples received their own law in 2022, and in Indonesia, large areas are planned to be managed by Indigenous communities.
Political Follow-Up
The report highlights the need for national and international reforms. Therefore, Norway—together with Peru and Brazil—is leading a new political initiative set to be launched at the climate summit in Belém this November. The hope is that more tropical forest countries will commit to securing Indigenous land rights by 2030.