The team of president-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) started talks with different foreign governments to try to increase the number of donors to the Amazon Fund, a financing mechanism for environmental projects that was blocked during the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) administration.
People who follow the theme told the Sheet that there are ongoing negotiations for Switzerland to make a contribution to the fund. France and the United Kingdom were also consulted on possible donations.
The nod was made to the governor of Pará, Helder Barbalho (MDB), who held meetings on the subject during COP27, the UN climate conference (United Nations) in Egypt.
“I had a meeting with France, which signaled positively [doar para o fundo]🇧🇷 And we even had information, as a result of a meeting we had there [Egito]of which the United Kingdom is also positive”, said Helder to Sheet.
Currently, the fund’s international donors are Norway (BRL 3.1 billion granted so far) and Germany (BRL 192 million). Petrobras also made donations between 2011 and 2018 that totaled R$ 17 million.
The Amazon Fund was paralyzed during the Bolsonaro administration. Norway and Germany announced in 2019 the freezing of transfers after the Bolsonaro government’s decision to extinguish the fund’s two governance bodies: the Guiding Committee (Cofa) and the Technical Committee (CTFA).
In addition to changes in the fund’s governance system, another factor that contributed to the freezing of money was the deforestation records recorded in recent years. The anti-environmental rhetoric of Bolsonaro, seen in Europe as a climate denier, has consolidated the fund’s paralysis.
Lula’s victory on October 30 radically changed the perception of foreign governments. Both Germany and Norway signaled their intention to collaborate again with the environmental financing mechanism.
“I am pleased to inform you that shortly after our victory in the October 30 election, Germany and Norway announced their intention to reactivate the Amazon Fund to finance environmental protection measures in the world’s largest tropical forest,” declared Lula during COP27.
The evaluation among the PT’s allies is that there is good will in the international community, including to expand the number of donors to the fund.
According to people following the talks, the talks with Switzerland are aimed at a possible announcement at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
The Swiss want to offer a relevant international stage for Lula’s possible participation in Davos, in January. The announcement of initiatives by the Swiss in the environmental area is considered a way of empowering the PT in the climate agenda —one of the goals of European countries.
Another government sought by Lula’s emissaries was the United Kingdom. Contacts were made during COP27.
Privately, the British say that a possible contribution to the Amazon Fund was not on their radar, since they work in other programs in Brazil. But, given the demand of the transitional government, the hypothesis started to be analyzed by London.
Helder Barbalho also stated in an interview with Sheet that raising funds for investments in the climate area —not just in the Amazon Fund— should be one of the axes of the new government’s environmental policy.
“We’re going to have to make this image reconstruction [do Brasil no exterior] an important asset for us to be able to extract from the main countries —the United States, United Kingdom, Norway, France and Germany stand out— opportunities that set an extremely relevant horizon for raising resources for climate finance”, he said.
Contributions to the Amazon Fund are made through a contract between the donor entity, in this case a foreign government, and the BNDES (National Bank for Economic and Social Development). The bank manages the fund, being responsible for raising funds and monitoring supported projects.
Interlocutors claim that, in the contract, the donor claims to be in accordance with the rules of the fund. Generally speaking, a technical committee is responsible for determining priorities; and the BNDES, for approving and implementing the application of funds.
“The Amazon Fund is an instrument of international cooperation, there must be formal understandings between the interested countries and the Brazilian government. Once this occurs, after technical analysis, bilateral negotiation and due approvals, the BNDES and the interested donors sign the contracts of donation”, said the development bank, in a note.
Questioned, the BNDES said that so far it has not been asked to participate in the process regarding the entry of new donors.
Such as Sheet As shown, the climate agenda is seen by Lula’s allies as the fastest way for him to present himself as a prominent leader on the global chessboard.
The strategy has already been put into practice, starting with the choice of COP27 as the PT’s first international destination and the meetings held in Egypt.
After being elected, Lula met with different foreign representatives responsible for dealing with climate change —such as John Kerry (United States), Xie Zhenhua (China), Espen Barth Eide (Minister of Climate and Environment of Norway) and Teresa Ribera (Minister of Ecological Transition in Spain).
The Planeta em Transe project is supported by the Open Society Foundations.
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