REDD+ readiness project on Capacity building for indigenous community people in Buli, Zhemgang

REDD+ readiness project on Capacity building for indigenous community people in Buli, Zhemgang

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation, and Conservation, Sustainable Management of Forest and Enhancement of Forest Carbon Stocks (REDD+) is a global initiative to reduce carbon emissions from forests and enhance carbon absorption. It was conceived as a mitigation mechanism to combat climate change in the meeting of Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

RSPN will be implementing project on Capacity building on REDD+ readiness for forest Dependent communities-Buli. This Capacity Building Project (CBP) is being funded under Phase two of the Readiness Fund of the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) being managed by the World Bank (WB). Tebtebba Foundation (Indigenous Peoples’ International Centre for Policy Research and Education) who was chosen as the Recipient of a small grant from the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) for the “FCPF Capacity Building on REDD+ for Forest-dependent Indigenous Peoples in East Asia and the Pacific and South Asia Regions” project and it was from Tebtebba foundation that RSPN secured the funding for project implementation.

The project has two major objectives under which several activities will be implemented the objectives are:

• To raise awareness of the forest dependent communities on REDD+ activities in Bhutan
• To build technical skills of forest dependent communities on REDD+ and engage them in decision making related to REDD+.

The proposed project aims to build capacity of the indigenous people of Buli on development of national REDD+ readiness plans and strategies, create awareness on risk, benefits and safeguards on REDD+ implementation and train communities on sustainable natural resource utilization and management.

Additionally this project will also complement RSPN’s effort on already initiated watershed conservation project in Buli.

REDD+ Readiness project in Bhutan

At national level, the REDD+ Readiness Project has been ongoing since 2014 which has been implementing by Watershed Management Division (WMD) under Department of Forest and Park Services (DoFPS).

The project will help to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, and ensure conservation, sustainable management and enhancement of forest. It will strengthen the existing forest policy and management systems, information and data, participatory methods and other human and institutional capacity as well as prepare Bhutan to engage in and benefit from the potentially emerging performance-based system from REDD+.

At the end of the project it is expected to come up with national REDD+ strategy and implementation framework including the national forest monitoring system, forest reference (emission) level, monitoring, reporting and verification mechanism and safeguard information system for REDD+.