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GEF-8 Southeast Asia and the Pacific Forests Integrated Program

Stretching from Bhutan to Papua New Guinea, the primary forests of Southeast Asia and the Pacific form one of the most biologically rich, and most threatened, forest biomes on Earth. Home to more than 5,000 threatened species, these forests regulate water and climate systems, store vast amounts of carbon, and sustain the livelihoods of over 560 million people across the region. Yet, more than 60 percent of the original vegetation has already been lost and the remaining forests face increasing pressure from climate change as well as drivers such as agriculture, logging, and land-use change. 

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Forest in Papua New Guinea
FAO/Cory Wright

 

The Southeast Asia and the Pacific Forests Integrated Program (SEAP Forests IP) is a six-year, USD 42.4 million initiative funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) under its eighth replenishment cycle (GEF-8), with an additional USD 185 million in co-financing. It is one of five such GEF initiatives, alongside the GEF-8 Critical Forest Biomes Integrated Programs for the Amazon, Guinean Forests, Mesoamerica, and the Congo Basin. Together, these programs are driving global systems change across the world’s most important primary forest landscapes. 

Co-led by IUCN and FAO, the SEAP Forests IP brings together governments, communities, and partners to conserve the region’s remaining primary forests and the essential ecosystem services they provide. The SEAP Forests IP combines country-level action in Lao PDR, Thailand and Papua New Guinea, as well as regional collaboration and knowledge sharing across Southeast Asia and the Pacific, with the goal to strengthen governance to secure the long-term protection and sustainable management of these globally important forest landscapes. More details are available in the program factsheet.

 

Program Goals

 

  • Improve management of 3.2 million ha of protected areas and more than 7 million ha of surrounding landscapes;
  • Restore 8,500 ha of degraded ecosystems;
  • Mitigate 34 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions; and
  • Reach nearly 20,000 people, particularly Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs).
Programme Components

Coherent policies and regulatory frameworks

Enhanced protected area governance, management and establishment

Primary forests outside protected areas 

Innovative financing and investment strategies

Programme coordination and knowledge sharing

Country Projects and Regional Collaboration

 

Country projects in Lao PDR, Papua New Guinea, and Thailand, will be implemented by FAO and UNDP and executed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Lao PDR, the Conservation and Environment Protection Authority of Papua New Guinea, and the Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Thailand.

A Regional Coordination Project (RCP) led by IUCN and FAO, working with partners including CIFOR-ICRAF and Grow Asia, will facilitate South-South knowledge exchange, technical support, and capacity development for improved management of primary forests across borders.

Opportunities for engagement with seven additional countries in the biome will continue to strengthen regional learning and policy processes. 

News and Events
USD $42 million programme launched for primary forests in Southeast Asia and th…