India is among the countries that chose not to sign a Leaders' Declaration on ending deforestation by 2030 at the COP26 climate summit on Tuesday, which has been endorsed by over 100 countries, including China and Brazil.
The Glasgow Leaders' Declaration on Forests and Land Use commits the signatories to halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation, backed by almost 14 billion pounds in public and private funding.
According to official sources, India had some concerns about linkages made in the final text with trade.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who formally launched the declaration on Tuesday, termed it a “landmark” agreement to protect and restore the earth's forests.
“These great teeming ecosystems – these cathedrals of nature - are the lungs of our planet. Forests support communities, livelihoods and food supply, and absorb the carbon we pump into the atmosphere. They are essential to our very survival,” said Johnson.
“With today's unprecedented pledges, we will have a chance to end humanity's long history as nature's conqueror, and instead become its custodian,” he said.
“We will strengthen our shared efforts to… facilitate trade and development policies, internationally and domestically, that promote sustainable development, and sustainable commodity production and consumption, that work to countries' mutual benefit, and that do not drive deforestation and land degradation,” the text notes in reference to trade – which is likely to have caused some concern on the Indian side.
The declaration will be supported by a pledge to provide 8.75 billion pounds of public finance from 12 countries, including the UK, from 2021-2025. This will support activities in developing countries, including restoring degraded land, tackling wildfires and supporting the rights of indigenous communities.
