ADB supports sustainable biodiversity management
The Asian Development Bank has approved US$12.8 million in additional financing for the ongoing Biodiversity Conservation Corridors Project in Laos. The grant assistance is sourced from ADB’s Strategic Climate Fund, Forest Investment Programme. The grant agreement was signed in Vientiane on October 18, inked by Deputy Minister of Finance Ms. Thipphakone Chanthavongsa and Officer-in-Charge of the ADB Lao Resident Mission Mr Steven Schipani. In 2012, Laos was selected as one of eight countries to pilot the Forest Investment Programme, one of several global Climate Investment Funds created to address climate change. This programme aims to pilot sustainable forest management and prepare countries to access Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation financing. Recognising that Laos has significant forest cover and is one of the most biodiverse countries in Asia, the project supports community-driven sustainable biodiversity management in the three southern provinces of Champassak, Attapeu and Xekong, and will run from 2016-2020.
