As part of the forest restoration actions carried out by the Ministry of Environment and Water, a Letter of Intent was signed on April 1 between the Minister of Environment and Water and the representatives of the indigenous communities involved to start the restoration project for 4,000 hectares in the cantons of Shushufindi and Orellana. The project will benefit more than 4,100 inhabitants of 35 indigenous communities in the  Orellana and Sucumbíos provinces. The restoration activities will take place in the Limoncocha parish in the Sucumbíos province and in the Dayuma parish in the Orellana province.

The Ministry of Environment and Water, through PROAmazonía and with the support of UNDP, has a Responsible Party Agreement signed between UNDP and the Hivos Organization for the implementation of the aforementioned project. This forest restoration initiative highlights the actions of the Environmental Authority for the conservation and protection of the natural heritage, as well as the reduction of deforestation and the articulated work with the indigenous peoples and nationalities of the Amazon.

The National Reforestation Program of the Ministry of Environment and Water, together with PROAmazonía, will provide technical support during the development of this project, which will last until May 2022. The goal is to reduce degradation, mitigate the effects of climate change, and promote forest conservation. The Environmental Authority will ensure compliance with the national guidelines for restoration actions, established in the National Restoration Plan 2019-2030.

The Dutch organization Hivos is the executing partner of the restoration project, with the participation of the Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ) and the indigenous communities as co-executors. This initiative will promote local bio-entrepreneurships in the beneficiary indigenous communities, with the aim of fostering new income alternatives based on non-timber forest products. This will contribute to the diversification of the local economy, recover ancestral knowledge and practices, and consequently ensure the protection of forests and their ecosystem services that benefit the inhabitants of the area and the country in general.

The event was attended by the Minister of Environment and Water, Marcelo Mata; the UNDP Resident Representative in Ecuador, Matilde Mordt; the Hivos Representative in Ecuador, Doris Ortiz; and the Manager of PROAmazonía, Patricia Serrano. On behalf of the local authorities, the mayor of the Municipal Government of Shushufindi, Esperanza Torres, and the presidents of the communities of: Yamanunka, Edwin Awak; Tiwiram, Juan Villagómez; Justicia Social, Carmen Armijos.

With the start-up of this restoration project, the Environmental Authority reaches 15,000 hectares under forest restoration processes in the Ecuadorian Amazon and dry forest in the south of the country, contributing directly to the conservation of the natural heritage and the reduction of deforestation.

Photographs: Communication Unit of PROAmazonía

Description: Representatives of the indigenous communities involved signed letters of intent with the National Environmental Authority.

for the restoration project for 4,000 hectares.

Author: Communication Unit of PROAmazonía