DOHA/SEOUL - The Global Carbon Council (GCC) and the Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFoCO) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation in addressing global climate change through the promotion of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and fostering an enabling and high-integrity carbon market ecosystem across Asia. The MoU was officially signed during a formal ceremony by Dr. Yousef Alhorr, founding chairman of the GCC, and Dr. Chongho Park, executive director of the AFoCO.

The partnership was initiated not only in response to UNEP’s inaugural State of Finance for Forests (SFF) report, which highlights the significant global shortfall in forest and environmental finance, but also to align with broader international efforts aimed at forest restoration, resilience, and long-term sustainability. In this context, the partnership seeks to leverage carbon-based incentives in line with the Paris Agreement.

According to the report, annual forest investments must more than triple from $84 billion in 2023 to $300 billion by 2030 to meet global climate and biodiversity targets. Currently, the world faces a forest finance gap of $216 billion per year, underscoring the need for scalable and credible market-based solutions. To this end, the agreement between GCC and AFoCO establishes a cooperative framework to support sustainable, verifiable, and impactful forestry and climate initiatives across the region.

Through this MoU, the two organisations will promote collaboration on Public–Private Partnership (PPP)-based Nature-based Solutions carbon incentive programmes, aligned with the Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) initiatives implemented by AFoCO to strengthen climate change mitigation, adaptation, and resilience.

Emphasising the strategic importance of the collaboration, Dr. Yousef Alhorr stated: “Forests are our most effective natural defense against global warming. Recent data shows that Asian forest sinks are already removing nearly one billion tons (0.9 Gt) of CO2 every year, making the region one of the most productive carbon absorbers on the planet. By scaling Nature-based Solutions (NbS) through our partnership with the Asian Forest Cooperation Organization, we are bringing together technical expertise, strong governance, and innovative carbon market frameworks to deliver measurable, high-integrity outcomes that benefit both people and the planet.”

© Copyright Qatar Tribune. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).