Saving tropical forests: Why corporate leadership is key

With finance, regulation and large actors in motion, COP30 is an important moment to strengthen the foundations that keep forests standing.

- Bernard Tan

A tree adoption site in South Sumatra, Indonesia, where mangrove seedlings have been planted. Indonesia is the second most biologically diverse country in the world after Brazil, and home to the world's largest area of mangrove ecosystems and tropical peatlands, which both store more carbon than rainforests.

(ST FILE PHOTO)

Four years ago, at the United Nations’ COP26 international climate summit, Singapore was one of over 140 countries that signed a declaration to end forest loss and degradation by 2030. Now, as we head into another climate conference on Nov 6,a stocktaking shows global deforestation rates have barely shifted since that pledge was made.

The latest count by the Forest Declaration Assessment found that some 8.1 million hectares of forests were lost in 2024, a level of destruction 63 per cent higher than the trajectory needed to halt deforestation by 2030. The global figure includes 6.7 million hectares of tropical primary forests.

It is by now clear how important forests - which act as carbon sinks and are a treasure trove of flora and fauna ~ are to achieving global climate and nature goals. Yet forest loss continues almost unabated.

The gap between promises and reality reflects a practical failure to create a durable architecture for conservation. To close it, we have to address the shortfalls in what is being done so far.

Three enabling conditions are essential for large-scale forest conservation and restoration: strong and enforceable regulation, participation by large actors, and mechanisms to monetise forest-positive outcomes. Until all three elements work in concert, progress will remain elusive.

To prevent forests on public land from being over-exploited, regulations enabling the establishment and protection of conservation areas must be enforceable.