Innovative financial solution promotes carbon removal in Cuban forests

The approval of the Payment for Environmental Services (PES) for the removal of sustainable forest carbon sets a precedent for Cuba's participation in the carbon bond market, a financing mechanism used in various countries to support environmental policies.

As a further step towards protecting Cuba's biodiversity, reducing pollution, and mitigating climate change, the PES procedure for carbon removal through sustainable forest management — the first financial solution of its kind in Cuba — has come into force.

The payment of environmental benefits for forest carbon removals is defined as "the incentive that can be granted to a natural or legal person responsible for the management of a forest area that removes carbon from the atmosphere through sustainable forest management", according to Resolution 28 of 2024 of the Ministry of Agriculture.

This solution, which is included in the country's financial plan for biodiversity, is promoted by the BIOFIN initiative and the ECOVALOR project. It is accompanied by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with national institutions such as the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Finance and Prices, the Ministry of Economy and Planning and other institutions involved in the Macro Programme for Natural Resources and Environment of the National Economic and Social Development Plan 2030.

According to the resolution, "carbon sequestration is the accumulation or storage of carbon in the biomass of living trees", so forest owners can apply for environmental service payment for forest carbon removal.

The approval of the Environmental Services Payment for the removal of sustainable forest carbon sets a precedent for Cuba's participation in the carbon bond market, a financing mechanism used in various countries to support environmental policies.

The Institute of Agroforestry Research (INAF) will be responsible for the measurements related to the fulfillment of the requirements to benefit from the incentive.

The UNDP has promoted various innovative financing solutions in Cuba that contribute to closing the financing gaps in the realization of the country's sustainable development goals, e.g. to sustainable land management and biodiversity conservation.