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Pilot Program to Conserve
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The Pilot Program represents a new, and so far
unique, model of international partnership. Collaboration on
environmental issues of global concern requires building and
fine-tuning novel institutional arrangements and procedures
on an international scale. Together the Brazilian
government, the World Bank, and the donors are seeking to
make this innovative international partnership work.
Currently, the program is undergoing a review of its
institutional framework which may result in substantive
changes in the program's governance and in the roles and
responsibilities of the various partners involved. The World Bank’s Rain Forest Unit in Brasilia
coordinates the preparation of projects between the
Brazilian government (and its agencies) and the donors. It
also administers the Rain Forest Trust Fund and oversees
ongoing projects. It uses the same standards, rules, and
procedures that apply to projects financed by World Bank
loans, although it accepts somewhat higher risks because of
the pilot nature of the program. Projects are prepared by the Brazilian
government and its agencies in consultation with
stakeholders. A special Inter Ministerial Coordinating
Commission approves and oversees all projects, which are
implemented by various federal agencies, state governments
in the Amazon, and local NGOs. The Ministry of the
Environment (MMA) is the lead ministry for the program
through its Secretariat for the Legal Amazon. Within this
Secretariat, the Pilot Program Executive Secretariat
coordinates the work of the technical teams for each project
and monitors implementation and results. Officials from donor
countries, the Brazilian
government (including state governments), NGOs, and the
World Bank meet once or twice a year to assess the Pilot
Program’s progress, offer guidance, and make
recommendations. In addition, an International Advisory
Group (IAG) of experts from around the world monitors
implementation and provides independent advice and
evaluation of the program. The group meets twice a year to
make recommendations to improve the program. Local representatives of all concerned parties
meet monthly in Brasilia to share information and exchange
views on program and project issues, creating a promising
new mode of international cooperation at both conceptual and
operational levels. These meetings are attended by
representatives of the Brazilian Ministry of Environment (MMA),
the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable
Natural Resources (IBAMA), the Ministry of Science and
Technology (MCT), the National Indian Foundation
(FUNAI),
the Amazon Working Group
(GTA, an organization of Amazon
NGOs), the Rain Forest Unit of the World Bank, and local
donor representatives. The government of Brazil, donors, and the World
Bank are actively involved in the Pilot Program, but they
cannot plan and implement the program alone. Every project
has key stakeholders who must be involved from the
beginning. Active participation of stakeholders that brings
in their interests and views is essential to the preparation
and implementation of projects under the Pilot Program.
Every Pilot Program project has an advisory or executive
commission that includes stakeholders. These commissions
help ensure that the views of the groups involved in a
project are considered and their interests safeguarded. Representatives of Brazilian society also
participate in the Pilot Program. The program places great
emphasis on broad representation in all program activities,
from project preparation and monitoring to evaluation of the
impact of the Pilot Program as a whole. The private sector, both in Brazil and abroad,
must also be involved in the program activities. Private
business involvement is important to open worldwide markets
for forest-based products, adopt sustainable forest
management practices, create private nature reserves, fund
research, and finance investments. But uncertainty about
markets, lack of information about products and
technologies, and legal and bureaucratic obstacles deter
private investment in nature conservation and sustainable
development. The Pilot Program is trying to identify and
address these barriers in order to open the way to greater
private sector involvement. |
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