Guyana’s REDD+ Agreement with Norway: Perceptions of and Impacts on Indigenous Communities

Timothy Laing

No 476, Working Papers from Center for Global Development

Abstract: This report examines the impact of the REDD+ agreement between Guyana and Norway on indigenous communities in the country. Through literature review, analysis of secondary data, and interviews with indigenous chiefs and other informed stakeholders, it aims to understand the concerns, hopes, and fears of indigenous communities at the start of the agreement, and the effects, if any, that communities have faced from REDD+. Concerns at the inception of the agreement focused on long-standing issues with land rights, and a sense of lack of consultation. There were hopes, however, in the potential economic benefits that could accompany REDD+. Implementation of REDD+ in Guyana has proved slow, and the cash (or other benefits) received by communities has been small. Deforestation has risen—due to increased mining activity—and costs incurred by REDD+ have been minimal. This has created an overall air of scepticism regarding the future of the initiative. Future developments of REDD+ could be stronger through its indirect effect on changing donor actions, and broader policy thinking in Guyana; but major challenges exist in creating an opt-in mechanism that is fair for all indigenous communities, integrating REDD+ with the extractives industries such as mining, and keeping a focus on low-carbon development in the light of major new oil finds.

Keywords: REDD+; Deforestation; Climate Change; Economic Development; Indigenous Peoples; Human Rights; Public Policy; Political Economy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O19 P48 Q01 Q23 Q28 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 45 pages
Date: 2018-02-21
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-env
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