– World Bank
World Bank officials on Wednesday evening underscored the importance of free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) in setting up forest protection schemes.
Meeting with local journalists at the Pegasus Hotel on Wednesday night, the officials said FPIC is taken very seriously. The officials were here for the Sixth Meeting of the Participants Committee of the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility, which opened here on Monday and ended Wednesday. The World Bank oversees the FCPF. Guyana is participating in the FCPF, which assists developing countries in their efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) by providing value to standing forests.
The issue of FPIC and whether this has been fulfilled have been raised by some indigenous leaders here, who do not agree that this has been fulfilled as claimed by the government.
The officials said the bank and the Participants Committee take cognizance of FPIC issues and participating countries can be asked to go back and do proper consultations. Reports emanating from participating countries are noted. “They do not go unnoticed,” they said.
