update Updated
category Biodiversity preservation Financing News
In Guatemala, forests and natural environments have decreased by 15.68% in the last 17 years, equivalent to 1,707,415 hectares, while permanent crops and urban areas have increased significantly between 2003 and 2020 (MAGA 2021). This trend is also observed in the Lake Atitlán basin.
Aware of this problem, the Authority for the Sustainable Management of the Lake Atitlán Basin and its Surroundings (AMSCLAE), based on its Law of Creation and Strategic Planning, promotes sustainable agriculture, good agricultural practices, soil conservation and increased forest cover.
AMSCLAE uses tools such as the PROBOSQUE Law and the PINPEP Law, which offer financial incentives for the management of natural forests, the establishment of forest plantations, the restoration of degraded land and the promotion of biodiversity. These incentives are paid by the Guatemalan Ministry of Public Finance, subject to approval by INAB.
From 2015 to 2024, 893,350 hectares have been entered into the forestry incentive programmes, in their different modalities according to the following table.
These programmes have contributed to the protection of biodiversity, the generation of ecosystem services, water retention and the conservation of scenic beauty. In addition, financing mechanisms such as payments for environmental services have been mobilised, with an estimated expenditure of USD 193,000.00 for landowners in the watershed.
AMSCLAE plans to include approximately 680 more hectares in these programmes between 2025 and 2033, together with annual reforestation activities of 400 hectares in conservation and restoration areas in the Lake Atitlán basin.
Authors : Juan Carlos BOCEL CHIROY, Head of the Monitoring and Evaluation Unit & Luis Armando RAMOS XOBIN, Head of the Agriculture and Forestry Department – AMSCLAE