Norway to Sign $1b Forestry Deal
andi BRATASIDAIndonesia, Norway to Sign $1b Forestry Deal Indonesia and Norway are expected to sign a $1 billion agreement on the forestry sector at a two-day meeting in Oslo this week, a senior Indonesian official said on Monday. The Oslo Climate and Forest Conference, to be held on Wednesday and Thursday, is expected to be attended by at least 10 heads of states from countries with rain forests. The conference aims to come up with a nonbinding framework on the UN-backed carbon trading mechanism known as REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation). The framework will be called REDD-plus Partnerships. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will co-chair the Oslo meeting. “The Oslo meeting is a very important step in realizing all the promises that have been made by [developed countries] and to sort out how the financing will be determined,” said Liana Bratasida , the environment minister’s assistant for global environmental affairs and international cooper...