SEMINAR FOR THE PRESENTATION OF THE PRELIMINARY TERMS OF THE “DEBT FOR NATURE SWAP” OR “DEBT FOR NATURE EXCHANGE” PROJECT
10 Dec, 2024
On Tuesday, December 10, 2024 in Brazzaville, the Congolese Minister of Economy and Finance, Mr. Jean-Baptiste ONDAYE, opened the seminar for the presentation of the preliminary terms of the “Debt for nature swap” or “Debt for nature exchange” project.
The ceremony took place in the presence of Mrs. Rosalie MATONDO, her colleague, Minister of Forest Economy;Messrs. Christopher HOLMES, Regional Director for Central Africa and the Gulf of Guinea of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Richard MALONGA, National Director of this international nature conservation organization. Also present were the members of the Interministerial Technical Commission that is piloting the project, whose official launch is scheduled for 2025.
This three-day working seminar, which will be held until Thursday, December 12, 2024, aims, according to Minister Jean-Baptiste ONDAYE, two objectives, namely: "the refinancing of commercial debt lines" and "the development of an Environmental Conservation Program". This refinancing of the debt, he continued, "will be carried out according to the following three conditions: concessional terms; the involvement of credit enhancers; and the establishment of a conservation program".
It should be noted that the "Debt for Nature Swap" operation allows a heavily indebted country to make its repayments more sustainable, while devoting resources to projects of general interest, such as nature conservation or the fight against poverty.
The dynamics that the Congolese government has just initiated, under the technical leadership of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, aims to absorb a loan of around 126 million dollars.
The stakeholders in the project are made up of, on the one hand, the Interministerial Commission (comprising the Ministries of Economy and Finance; Environment, Sustainable Development and the Congo Basin; Forest Economy; as well as other departments whose action contributes to the well-being of the population) and, on the other hand, the following strategic partners: Centerview Partners, as financial advisor in charge of structuring the operation; Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS); The Nature Conservancy (TNC), in charge of the Conservation Program; and Cleary Gottlieb, as legal advisor.
Overview of Congo’s biodiversity
The Republic of Congo is an ecological jewel in the heart of the Congo Basin, the second largest tropical forest in the world after the Amazon. With 69% of its territory covered by forests (145,000 km2, approximately 23 million hectares), Congo, through its ecosystems, plays a key role in carbon sequestration, absorbing nearly 1.2 billion tons of CO2 each year. This is a major asset in the fight against climate change.
Congo has carbon storage in peatlands, estimated at 30% of the world's tropical peatlands.
Congo has a coastline that extends over 170 km, marine and coastal ecosystems, such as mangroves. These cover approximately 200 thousand hectares, which store up to 1,000 tons of carbon per hectare. Congo's seagrass beds also play an important role in carbon storage.
In its biodiversity, Congo is also home to more than 400 species of mammals, 1,000 species of birds and more than 10,000 species of plants.
The Communication Unit of the Ministry of Economy and Finance
