Norway Spells Out Plan to Fund Kyoto Protocol

A DECISION by the Norwegian government to negotiate post Kyoto Protocol with other countries bilaterally is aimed at sending a strong message to international community that Oslo is committed to address causes of green house gas emissions blamed for causing global warming.

An agricultural economist from Centre for International Forestry Research in Indonesia, Dr Maria Brockhaus said in Dar es Salaam recently that Norway is showing the way to avoid delays in hatching a post Kyoto Protocol deal through United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

"Norway has invested heavily in finding measures to mitigate climate change through REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) hence they don't want to see the process failing," Dr. Brockhaus said.

She said REDD is an important instrument to compensate communities that protect forests while penalizing countries and private companies emitting carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Dr Brockhaus said developing countries such as Tanzania need to be compensated for helping the world to absorb carbon dioxide and other hazardous gases emitted by rich countries and companies during production.

"REDD is not there to hinder development as some people are arguing but instead it is for sustainable development," she argued while urging Tanzania to cease the opportunity and allow communities benefit from the initiative.

Tanzania and Indonesia are two countries that have signed bilateral agreements with Norway to implement REDD which will become operation in January 2013.This after the expiry of Kyoto Protocol whose implementation was frustrated by major global polluters such as the United States. Norway continues to be the UN-REDD Programme's first and largest donor.

Since the Programme was launched in 2008, Norway has committed 52.2 million US dollars covering 2008/9 and another 31 million US dollars for 2010. In June 2009, Denmark became the second donor country to join the UN-REDD Programme, committing 2 million US dollars and another 6 million US dollars in November 2010.

At the end of 2009, Spain announced 20.2-million-US-dollar pledge to the programme over a period of three years and confirmed 1.4 million US dollars for 2010 in November 2010. UN REDD has 29 countries as partners so far.

A senior lecturer from University of Dar es Salaam's Department of Geography, Dr George Jambia urged National REDD Steering Committee headed by Professor Pius Yanda to incorporate the civil society in the process of devising a regime for the implementation of the programme.

"It looks like the private sector has been sidelined in the process which is not helpful," Dr Jambia warned.