A group of technicians and researchers from the governments of Ghana and Liberia conduct a study tour at EfD Central America host institution CATIE. The objective of the visit was to learn about experiences with Payments for Environmental Services and other incentives to promote the conservation of natural resources that are implemented in agricultural landscapes in the country.
The visit took place from January 13th to 21rst of the current year, the study trip included lectures and field trips. EfD Center Director Roger Madrigal conducted the presentation: “Experiences of PES developed by CATIE in Latin American countries” the presentation described the experience of CATIE on developing and implementing PES schemes in Central America over the last ten years.
“This knowledge guides policy makers and practitioners to develop robust PES programs to protect and enhance the provision of ecosystem services at the local level, with special attention on the financial sustainability on the long run” Madrigal stated.
The training is carried out jointly with the World Bank, who supported this effort with the participation of the renowned international expert Stefano Pagiola, leader of that institution in the subject of Payments for Environmental Services.
Pagiola commented that African countries have great potential to implement Payments for Environmental Services and strengthen their systems of conservation areas and indicated that with this tour it is expected that staff will understand more in detail how they work and how to implement these tools.
For his part, Saah David, representative of the Forest Sector of Liberia, indicated that it is very valuable for them to visit Costa Rica for being an international reference point in the area of conservation areas and that the support of CATIE has been fundamental to strengthen their capacities in the development of systems and policies that promote Payments for Environmental Services.
Fredua Agyeman, of the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology of Ghana, said: "In Ghana we have begun to strengthen the management of environmental resources, know how to apply various conservation tools in Costa Rica is essential and we want to replicate in our country similar efforts ".