In Davos, Helder Barbalho proposes bioeconomy as a new vocation for the Legal Amazon

Governor Helder Barbalho was featured in the debate “Paths to deliver a sustainable bioeconomy in the Amazon”, held this Thursday morning (19), at the 2023 World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland.

The program brought together high-level public and private actors from different countries to discuss the transition to a standing forest and a sustainable bioeconomy in the Amazon Basin.

“We had the opportunity to discuss the importance of the bioeconomy as a new business strategy that can reconcile biodiversity, the richness of the forest, and particularly, the Amazon is the greatest biodiversity asset in the world with the relevance of finding a social solution with generation of employment and income with the transition of land use.”

Helder Barbalho, governor of Pará

In addition to Helder Barbalho, the Minister of the Environment of Brazil, Marina Silva, participated, as well as ministers from Colombia, Peru, Germany and the United Kingdom, as well as important private companies that are willing to finance investments in technology, innovation and knowledge. .

“The idea is that from there, studying and enhancing the richness of biodiversity, we can leverage the business chain, effectively making the bioeconomy the new vocation of the states of the Amazon, and in particular, of the state do Pará”, concluded Helder.

During the meeting, possible financing was discussed, including risk elimination mechanisms, and successful approaches that can be used by jurisdictions in the Amazon, in addition to making the transition to an economy that offers benefits to people and the planet.

Advances –  According to the State Secretariat for the Environment and Sustainability (Semas), there was a 21% reduction in deforestation in the State of Pará, according to data from the National Institute for Special Research (Inpe) in the Amazon Deforestation Calculation Program ( Prodes 2022). 

The reduction achieved, of 1,097km² in absolute numbers, comprises 75% of the reduced area in the Legal Amazon. Pará has been expanding actions aimed at a low-carbon economy, through valuing the forest, with land use alternatives without forest conversion, as proposed by the State Bioeconomy Plan, launched at the Climate Conference (COP 27) in Egypt , in November 2022. Semas is committed to strengthening actions to combat environmental crime by joining future efforts between the state and federal governments.

Source Agency Pará