24 July 2013: The Climate Investment Funds (CIF) reported on its support to community forestry enterprises (CFEs) in Mexico as a measure to combat climate change and increase livelihoods.

The focus on CFEs in Mexico is tied to the land tenure system under which 60% of the country’s forests are managed communally, supporting about 13 million people, about half of who are indigenous peoples. Such communal forests tend to perform better with regards to sustainable management as they support multiple uses and are managed to provide many different ecosystem services required by the community.

According to CIF, CFEs face a number of challenges related to inadequate access to loans and investments, which the Government of Mexico is addressing through a project to reduce lending rates on loans to CFEs. The Government’s Forest Investment Plan is supported by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) though the Forest Investment Program of the CIF. The IDB project is to provide micro-loans to CFEs, as well as technical assistance to build community acceptance of loans and support loan management and repayment.

The project will disburse loans ranging from US$800 to US$3,000 and is expected to result in a 6% annual increase in profits from CFEs that support almost 5,000 people directly. The project is also expected to result in avoiding greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions amounting to about 28,000 carbon tons equivalent.

The CIF is a collaborative initiative of the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), IDB and the World Bank. [CIF Press Release]