Papua New Guinea has launched a $63.4 million climate finance project aimed at protecting its forests while supporting sustainable livelihoods for communities across the country.
Funded by the Green Climate Fund, the results-based payments program recognizes Papua New Guinea's verified reduction of 17 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent between 2014 and 2016 under the REDD+ framework.
The initiative was officially launched at APEC Haus in Port Moresby and is expected to channel a significant share of climate finance directly to local communities while strengthening sustainable forest management and conservation efforts.
Papua New Guinea, which has approximately 78% forest cover, is regarded as one of the world's most forest-rich nations. Its forests play an important role in biodiversity conservation and carbon storage, making them critical to global climate mitigation efforts.
A key feature of the project is its focus on community development. According to project officials, 60% of the funding will be directed toward livelihood activities, including sustainable agriculture, forest conservation and other low-emission development initiatives.
Ronald Meketa, chairman of the National Climate Change Board, said the funding must deliver tangible benefits to communities.
"Our communities will see and feel the benefits of this funding," Meketa said during the launch.
"Too often, large amounts of climate finance are discussed globally, but very little reaches the people on the ground. Papua New Guinea cannot afford that anymore. The hard reset starts today. This programme must become a model of delivery, accountability and visible results."
Debra Sungi, acting managing director of the Climate Change and Development Authority, said the project marks the culmination of years of technical work and coordination among government agencies, provinces, landowners and development partners.
"This represents many years of consultations, technical assistance, and coordination across government, provinces, landowners, and development partners," Sungi said.
"Today, we move from discussion and planning to on-the-ground delivery."
The project will be implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in partnership with the Climate Change and Development Authority and other national stakeholders. It will also support implementation of Papua New Guinea's National REDD+ Strategy 2017–2027 while strengthening coordination, monitoring and reporting systems.
FAO Head of Office in Papua New Guinea, Kachen Wongsathapornchai, said the launch marks Papua New Guinea's transition from REDD+ readiness to large-scale implementation.
"Papua New Guinea has played an important role in shaping global forest and climate systems, and now stands among the few countries ready to operationalise results-based finance at scale," he said.
Meanwhile, Shalini Bahuguna, said the project demonstrates how climate action can generate broader development outcomes.
"Papua New Guinea is demonstrating how climate ambition can translate into real development outcomes," Bahuguna said.
The initiative reinforces Papua New Guinea's position in global climate action efforts while providing new opportunities for rural communities to benefit from sustainable development and forest conservation activities.
