LatinNews Daily - 14 March 2024

*The European Union (EU) and Honduran government have signed a €23.4m (US$25.6m) financing agreement to protect the forest sector known as ‘AVA y más allá – Alianza Forestal y Negocios Verdes’ (AVA and beyond – forest alliance and green business). According to a Honduran government press release, President Xiomara Castro oversaw the signing of the agreement, which was inked by the head of the national institute of forest management (ICF), Luis Soliz, and the director of the European Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, Felix Fernández-Shaw. The government statement highlights that the latest agreement seeks to contribute to the fulfilment of the Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (VPA-FLEGT), a timber trade agreement signed by Honduras and the EU which took effect on 1 September 2022 which seeks to address illegal logging and associated trade, promoting green businesses. According to the government, the forest alliance with the EU will work towards reaching the government’s goal of restoring 1.3m hectares of forest and promoting an environment suitable for creating and developing small and medium-sized businesses in the forestry sector. It adds that the agreement is expected to “reduce the rate of deforestation in Honduras” and “stimulate trade and investment, to create an impact in terms of employment and livelihoods, in a socially just and ecologically rational manner”. The statement concludes by reaffirming the Honduran government’s commitment to preserving and protecting the country’s forests and natural resources - citing the government’s “massive reforestation campaign” and creation of three green battalions to safeguard the protected areas of Honduras, with the support of the armed forces.