South American leaders meet for summit on protecting Amazon

Buenos Aires [Argentina], August 9: South American leaders come together in Belem, Brazil on Tuesday at a summit on the Amazon to discuss the crucial question of how to protect the world's largest rainforest.
The Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO) gathers leaders from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela for a two-day meeting.
One priority will be to agree on a common stance for the upcoming UN Climate Conference COP28, which kicks off at the end of November in Dubai.
The Amazon rainforest is considered an essential carbon sink, boasting the ability to soak up huge amounts of carbon dioxide, a decisive function in the international fight against climate change. The summit's host, Brazil, has both the biggest responsibility and burden to take care of the Amazon, as 60 percent the rainforest is in Brazil.
Since taking office earlier this year, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has made strong pledges to get Amazon deforestation down to zero by 2030, after his right-wing predecessor Jair Bolsonaro's widespread destruction and unregulated development of the rainforest, hurting both the ecosystem and local Indigenous populations.
Lula has mostly kept his promise, by instigating a large-scale crackdown on loggers, farmers and illegal gold prospectors. The measures are already having an effect: In July, deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon fell by 66 percent compared to the same month last year, according to preliminary figures.
Other countries with interests in the region, such as Germany, are also sending their representatives to the summit. Germany and Norway are among the major contributors to the Amazon Fund, a financial mechanism which helps support the maintenance of the rainforest. "The Amazon is the green lung of the entire region. It harbours an inconceivable treasure of biodiversity and is home to indigenous communities with a huge cultural diversity," said Niels Annen, Parliamentary State Secretary at Germany's Development Ministry.
Source: Qatar Tribune