During the workshops held on March 5 in Puerto Maldonado and Thursday, March 7 in Tarapoto, the technical assistance and financing services for bio-businesses of Profonanpe's EBBF project were presented, together with the framework for the promotion of eco- and bio-businesses of the Ministry of the Environment, and other alternatives and local experiences in the formation and financing of Amazonian bio-businesses were also presented.
Kurt Rothschild, Project Manager of the «Eco and Bio-Business Finance Facility” (EBBF Amazon), presented the scope and services of the project, highlighting the contribution to the sustainable development of the Amazon forests in Peru through the promotion of eco and bio businesses that help mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. He highlighted the great potential of these bio-businesses to care for the environment and generate social and economic benefits, protecting hectares of forest and creating green jobs for women and men, including indigenous peoples.
Jesús Valverde, Specialist in the Environmental Financing Directorate of MINAM, detailed opportunities and criteria for the formation of bio-businesses, focusing on the functions of the Ministry, emphasizing, “We are responsible for the design and promotion of instruments, both economic and financial, to facilitate public and private investment in the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity”. He presented the considerations of the Financing Program for Bio-businesses, which is led by MINAM, which involves various actors such as financial institutions and bio-businesses through a trust, highlighting the importance of sustainable investment in the Amazon.
Mr. Fernando Olivera, representative of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), then led a group discussion to identify gaps and limitations to the access of eco- and bio-businesses to the supply of financial services.
In addition, the workshops were attended by leading experts who shared their experiences in the field of eco and bio-business in the «Green Financing» panel. In Puerto Maldonado, Nelsith Sangama, coordinator of the indigenous economy program of the Asociación Interétnica de Desarrollo de la Selva Peruana AIDESEP, presented the program and its main results, as well as Ernesto Velarde, eco-business specialist of Conservación Amazónica (ACCA), who emphasized the evolution of activities to support BioTrade in the Madre de Dios region. Yuly Matos Carhuancho, specialist in positioning and commercial articulation of products from Natural Protected Areas of the National Service of Natural Areas Protected by the State (SERNANP), highlighted the development of bio-businesses in more than 30 Natural Protected Areas and their buffer zones.
Walter Quertehuari, president of the Amarakaeri Communal Reserve (ECA), shared the experience of strengthening the management of communal reserves, as well as the main results of the identification and valorization of native cocoa in Madre de Dios. Participants highlighted the importance of collaboration and the creation of strategic alliances to promote bio-businesses.
On Thursday, March 7, Rocío Escudero, project manager for the Confederation of Amazonian Nationalities of Peru (CONAP), CONAP, Gustavo Montoya, head of Cordillera Azul National Park and representative of SERNANP, Javier Martínez, senior manager of sustainable Amazonian landscapes of Rainforest Alliance and Luis Angulo Talavera, technical coordinator of the Indigenous Economy program of CODEPISAM and representative of AIDESEP, who recognized the great potential of indigenous enterprises to contribute to the conservation of biodiversity and sustainable development of the Amazon.
The workshop concluded with a renewed commitment to promote the sustainable management and conservation of Peruvian forests through technical assistance and the provision of financial resources to bio-businesses, thus promoting sustainable economic development in the Amazon.
About the EBBF Amazon Project:
The Amazon EBBF project is established as a fund capitalized by the Green Climate Fund and Profonanpe, through which technical assistance and partially reimbursable grants will be provided to eco and bio businesses, with the objective of supporting the sustainable management and conservation of Amazonian forests. The EBBF will also support the development of technical and institutional capacities at the public and private levels, seeking to contribute to the strengthening of Peru's REDD+ framework.
