Netherlands pledges $500 million to a new tropical Forest wealth fund

The Dutch government pledged up to $500 million over the next decade to an international fund designed to protect tropical forests.

The money will support the Tropical Forest Forever Facility, a public-private wealth fund that rewards countries for preserving forest land. The World Bank will develop the fund, which aims to reach a total value of $125 billion.

The Dutch government joined a coalition of nations including Brazil, Indonesia, Britain, Norway, France, and Germany that have already committed funds to the project. The fund intends to use net proceeds to pay countries that actively maintain their forests, with an expected reward of about $4 per year for every hectare. The fund will use satellite imagery to verify that preservation efforts are happening.

The Dutch government stated that the initiative aims to save up to 900 million hectares of tropical forests and expects the facility to begin operations by mid-2027.