After the failure and disappointment of the Conference of Parties (COP 29 Baku, Azerbaijan) to meet the demands of the most vulnerable communities and the significant barriers and constraints of interest within the developed and developing nations. The small and biodiverse country of South America, Suriname is a leading country in the world in attaining the status of a carbon-negative state. More than 93% of Suriname is covered by substantial tropical rainforests, which absorb more carbon than they produce. Despite economic and geographical realities, Suriname’s commitment to protecting the environment underlines that size does not mathematically equate to a small impact when leading to climate change. At the same time, when the global climate worsens, Suriname’s success proves the worth of progressive and people-oriented policies that do not neglect the climate issue and marginalised groups.
Understanding the Science of Carbon Negativity
Thus, the term carbon negativity describes a state where the country absorbs more carbon dioxide than it emits. This is accomplished by Suriname, which has the largest forest area of 151000 Sq Km and is a carbon sink with roughly 11Gt of carbon annually. These forests also store 8.8 million metric tons of CO2 annually, seven million metric tons of emissions for this country. It is noteworthy that Suriname has a net negative carbon balance of -1.8 million metric tons, which makes the country one of the top three carbon-negative countries in the world. Such success can be attributed to initiatives, effective environmental policies, and a profound cultural understanding of the indigenous people concerning the environment.
Fighting Climate Change
In combating and addressing climate change, Suriname has been quite assertive in playing its role globally. By the obligations under the Paris Agreement, the country was the second state to announce NDCs (Nationally Determined Contributions), which are analysed and revised every five years. These contributions are intended to decrease emissions, promote renewable energy sources, and improve forest management. It will be a significant milestone for Suriname to increase the contribution of over 35% of renewable energy in total electrical energy production by 2030. Further, it incorporates climate-smart agriculture practices such as sustainable land and water use in the agricultural sector to reduce agricultural emissions.
Challenges to Sustainability
However, Suriname is not without challenges within its system; many of the population inhabits the coastal strip, threatened by climate change, rising sea levels, and severe storms and cyclones. It faces economic pressure from mining, logging, and agriculture that may harm the forests. However, Indigenous peoples and endangered species seldom take up equal opportunities to express their rights and interests in policy-making for ecological conservation.
Carbon Credits and ITMOs: A Bold Move
Suriname is pioneering the sale of Internationally Transferable Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs) by protecting its forests and enhancing carbon stock. These carbon credits are emissions reductions verified under the United Nations-REDD program. Suriname cut 4.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2021, which the country can sell credits for. It offers the developing country needed climate finance besides allowing other countries and firms to buy their way out of their emissions.
ITMO with Suriname is one of the first initiatives launched under the Paris Agreement framework. Despite concerns about the system’s weak verification standards, critics have defended it as an honest and viable means through which developing nations can access climate finance. Colossal interest is anticipated in the sale since nearly thirty firms are evaluating the possibility of buying such credits.
Partnership with World Bank: A Strategic Roadmap
The World Bank Group Board has recently approved the proposed development agenda that covers the plan up to 2015 of Directors as the new strategic Country Partnership Framework for Suriname. This strategy envisages the development of economic security, creating conditions for economic growth for all sectors and levels and improving the work of institutions. Compatible with Greater Suriname’s Multi-Annual Development Plan for the years 2022-2026, the strategy to cope with the authoritative state aims at the generation of decent work and employment opportunities that would be sustainable and do not contribute to the creation of injustice, inspired by recent offshore oil findings. This comes just in time as the country seeks to overcome the economic recession, which saw the country’s GDP shrink by 15.9% in 2020, together with soaring inflation that hit 74% in 2021.
As mentioned, the role of the new framework is employment, less vulnerability for citizens, and environmentalism. Some of these are increasing access to quality education and training for developing human resources for labour demands in emerging economic activities or managing the local business environment to encourage enterprise development for job creation and economic diversification. Since Suriname is prone to natural disasters and remains one of the few countries with a negative carbon footprint, the strategy links climate and disaster risk reduction. The Minister of Finance and Planning of Suriname, Stanley Raghoebarsing, noted the priorities in diversifying the economy and creating employment, delivering on education and health, and managing its natural resources for growth as being cardinal to the country’s development.
Since most of Suriname’s land area is under forest cover, proper protection of the forest while at the same time enhancing the welfare of the indigenous and Maroon peoples living in the forests is essential. The World Bank also approves requests to tap carbon markets to support responsible mining and strengthen community-based resilience programs to protect the environment and encourage sustainable income generation. Such goals of economic development based on sustainable and inclusive growth, in turn requiring a focus on improving the well-being of every person, especially the lowest layers of the population, are in line with the activity and mission of the World Bank as a partner of Suriname, said Diletta Doretti, the World Bank Resident Representative for the country.
Government and Organizational Efforts
The Government of Suriname has been implementing policies such as the National REDD+ Policy, which aims to reduce emissions from deforestation and foster sustainable management of the country’s forests. It also engages other regional and international organisations, such as the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC), to improve climate change readiness. The CCCCC supplies policy support for priority planning, capacity, and skills for mainstreaming climate change in the development framework of Suriname. Also, the Centre provides information on the experiences of the various Caribbean nations. It handles regional climate change projects worth roughly fifty million US dollars, enabling Suriname to tap into international climate funding sources.
Suriname has also embraced stakeholders’ engagement, especially Indigenous peoples. Native populations are in key positions in conserving forest resources as they hold inherent skills in enhancing their diversification. There is expertise from environmental organisations and advocacy; there is funding and technology from international entities. Others compel investment in renewable energy and tourist exploitation. These actors constitute a web of guardians of Suriname’s biological assets.
This demonstrates the effect of environmental strategies formulated by Suriname on various groups. Indigenous people will effectively conserve their ancestral lands, while coastal people are vulnerable to an ever-worsening climate. There are numerous examples of how habitat loss due to deforestation substantially threatens animal species; Jaguars and Giant River Otters are two such species. The needs of these special groups should not be overlooked in the course of conservation as that will determine the future of those conservation exercises.
Climate Initiatives in the Caribbean and Latin American Region
Caribbean and Latin American countries have also come up with regional and individual efforts to combat climate change. The CCCCC coordinates the Caribbean’s climate response and partners with smaller countries, such as the Alliance of Small Island States (SIDS), to represent climate-affected countries. UNFCCC also endorses regional adaptation measures, meaning that Caribbean nations. Suriname, inclusive, is not left out in the global crusade against climate change. Some of the Caribbean countries have also initiated creative climate change intervention plans. For example, Barbados has adopted the “Roofs to Reefs” program, which implies the total rejection of fossil fuel by 2030 with much emphasis on home strengthening, sustainable land management and coral reef rehabilitation. They have submitted their updated climate action plan and are extending energy efficiency, water saving and watershed projects. Community-based early warning has been embraced in Dominica, along with creating the Climate Resilience Execution Agency and climate-resistant projects.
Looking Forward
The development of green entrepreneurship centres in Suriname would support the green business by offering funding, coaching, and education to provide an encouraging environment for sustainable agriculture companies, renewable energy and carbon traders, thus diversifying the economy and creating jobs that are friendly to the environment. It was proposed that a carbon-negative certification program could encourage business and community sustainable practices by providing tax incentives and allowing businesses access to the international market. Extending the blue carbon concept to other vulnerable ecosystems, such as mangroves and coral reefs, would position Suriname for regional cooperation or the blue carbon credit system. Certifying sustainable mining could positively impact mining by guaranteeing environmentally responsible extraction of minerals, while a carbon dividend program could fairly share the proceeds generated from a carbon credit market.
To augment its climate leadership status, Suriname could join a group of states that are harmful carbon emitters to ensure that other countries support them and provide them with information on how to operate. Encouraging carbon-negative tourism can present the nation’s natural endowment and rich culture while including carbon offset payments in eco-tourism packages. Sustainable use of the green bonds could come from forest preservation projects, while collaborating with women and youths in leadership for climate change could further create better leadership in renewable energy and conservation. Finally, adopting smart agriculture and a circular economy could increase efficiency and resource utilisation, supporting Suriname’s environmental and economic policies.
