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The record-breaking forest fires ravaging South America in recent months are a stark reminder of the global climate crisis. With its peak fire season starting in late November and stretching until April, Chile is no stranger to this reality. Wildfires have become a major concern, as evidenced by the destruction of Santa Olga in 2017 and recent fires in Viña del Mar and Valparaíso, causing widespread losses and impacting numerous communities.
This crisis is not accidental but is a direct consequence of climate change. Chile has faced a severe drought for over a decade, so intense that experts have dubbed it a mega-drought. The World Resources Institute (WRI) ranks Chile among the most water-stressed countries globally. Droughts, heat waves, and wildfires are creating a dangerous cycle, with scarcer water resources and environmental destruction threatening ecosystems and livelihoods, and fires exacerbating CO2 emissions, deforestation, and forest and land degradation. Protecting Chile’s forests is not just an environmental necessity but is vital to the country’s economic and social future. In essence, protecting forests means protecting water – and vice-versa, among other benefits from nature.
In essence, protecting forests means protecting water – and vice-versa, among other benefits from nature.
Native forests cover roughly 20% of Chile’s land, providing essential ecosystem services and serving as a cultural and medicinal resource for Indigenous and rural communities. These forests also house emblematic biodiversity, such as the pudú, the world’s smallest deer. This holistic view of forests is central to Chile’s 2017-2025 National Strategy on Climate Change and Vegetation Resources (ENCCRV), and its approach to Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+).
Chile has been a pioneer in the REDD+ approach, which rewards successful efforts to reduce carbon emissions through activities that protect forests. The World Bank has collaborated with Chile for over 15 years to develop this innovative approach, coordinated by Chile’s National Forestry Corporation (CONAF), under the Ministry of Agriculture. Remarkably, Chile was the first country in Latin America—and the third in the world—to sign an Emissions Reduction Payment Agreement (ERPA) with the World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF).
Through the ENCCRV, Chile has harmonized its international commitments and national initiatives, creating a cohesive strategy to combat climate change and protect forests and other vegetation. The World Bank and FCPF have supported Chile in developing the national REDD+ strategy and implementation framework, building national systems for monitoring, verifying and reporting emission reductions, applying safeguards, and distributing benefits. Chile ensures that REDD+ benefits —generated by selling high-integrity carbon credits — reach the true stewards of forests.
The World Bank and FCPF have supported Chile in developing the national REDD+ strategy and implementation framework, building national systems for monitoring, verifying and reporting emission reductions, applying safeguards, and distributing benefits.
Unlike other countries, Chile’s systems implemented under the ENCCRV are applied to all their associated public projects, regardless of the financing source. As a result, Chile is in the process of distributing over $60 million from the Green Climate Fund in non-monetary benefits. To date, this process has benefited about 3,500 people, many of whom are women (48%) and Indigenous communities (55%). These benefits have enabled fire prevention, post-fire forest restoration, sustainable biomass energy and timber use, forest-based tourism, and invasive species removal, among other activities.
Table 1 – Actual Beneficiaries of Chile’s ENCCRV – 2021 2024
Through this process, Chile has gained valuable insights and is now adapting its benefit-sharing system improve efficiency and effectiveness. This commitment to continuous learning and improvement strengthens Chile’s approach, ensuring their strategies remain robust and impactful.
Fig. 1 – Projects of Chile’s ENCCRV by tenure category, out of a total of 518 projects 2022-2024
Lessons Learned from Chile
Chile’s experience offers valuable insights for other countries looking to strengthen their climate and forest conservation efforts. Here are three key lessons:
- Unified Systems Maximize Impact: By using the same systems to implement projects from diverse financing sources under a single, cohesive strategy, Chile ensures that investments remain focused, efficient, and impactful. This approach streamlines processes, reduces duplication, and creates a more integrated and effective response to climate challenges.
- Data-Driven Learning Fuels Continuous Improvement: Chile’s systems are designed not just for immediate results, but to generate ongoing learning. The wealth of data collected through these systems is now informing the update of Chile’s National Climate Change and Vegetation Resources Strategy, as well as the refinement of its benefit-sharing mechanisms—creating a feedback loop that enhances effectiveness over time.
- Long-Term Commitment Pays Off: Chile’s 15-year dedication to building robust policies, systems, and processes has proven critical to its success. Although the country relies on consultants for certain tasks, public servants lead the development and implementation of key initiatives, such as the benefit sharing system, leveraging existing national capacities. To date, MINAGRI, through CONAF, has established the benefit sharing system as an effective and functional tool with the potential for expansion to other ministries.
Looking Ahead
Chile is in process of updating its ENCCRV Strategy to align with its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), reinforcing its commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050. Forest conservation, already a key element of the strategy, will remain central in this update, helping mitigate climate change, protect biodiversity, and support local communities.
As the urgency for climate action grows, Chile’s proactive approach shows how national policies can drive real change. By uniting government, local communities, and stakeholders, Chile is building a sustainable future and offering a model for other nations facing similar challenges.
By the end of 2024, Chile will finalize independent verification of its Emission Reductions, with the first FCPF ERPA payment expected in 2025. This milestone means more than meeting climate targets—it brings real benefits to rural communities, safeguarding their heritage and livelihoods.
Source: blogs.worldbank.org
