21 December 2011
CCAD Receives Funding to Implement Conservation and Climate Projects
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Germany will provide €17 million to the Central American Commission on Environment and Development to protect the Mesoamerican Reef System, support the sustainable use of the Mayan Jungle, develop REDD mechanisms and help indigenous communities manage natural resources.

14 December 2011: Germany’s Ambassador Christian Stocks and El Salvador’s Environment Minister Herman Rosa Chavez, on behalf of the Central American Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD), have signed an agreement and exchanged three letters of cooperation whereby Germany will provide €17 million to support the implementation of four environmental, biodiversity and climate projects in Central America.

The first project, “Marine Resources Conservation Programme for Central America (MARFUND),” was launched in 2007 with German funding, which is now supplemented by an additional support of EUR5 million. MARFUND aims to protect the Mesoamerican Reef System (known as SAM, its acronym in Spanish) shared by Belize, Guatemala and Honduras.

The second project, “Programme for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) in Central America and the Dominican Republic,” involves about €6 million over six years, and aims to foster effective REDD (reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation) mechanisms in the eight CCAD member countries (Belize, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama).

The third project, “Programme of Managing Natural Resources Management with Central American Indigenous Communities,” will receive €1 million to support the conservation and protection of natural resources within indigenous territories while also improving life quality and income generation opportunities for the indigenous populations involved.

The fourth project, “Protect for the Protection and Sustainable Use of the Mayan Jungle,” will receive €5 million to help protect a large area of tropical forests along the borders of southern Mexico, Belize and Guatemala. In particular, the project will seek to improve coordination between government agents among the three countries responsible for safeguarding the Mayan Jungle, while seeking to stimulate both private and public sector actors to take specific measures to promote its conservation and sustainable use. [CCAD Press Release (in Spanish)]

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