Gabon’s government and a coalition of international donors have signed an agreement to protect 34,000 sq km of rainforest in the Congo Basin, one of the world’s most important ecosystems.
The initiative, known as Gabon Infini, will channel USD 94 million from donors including the Global Environment Facility and the Bezos Earth Fund, alongside USD 86 million in government funding over the next decade. The programme uses a “Project Finance for Permanence” (PFP) model, which ties the release of funds to specific government policy reforms on conservation.
The approach is gaining traction globally. Brazil announced a similar PFP framework this week covering almost 243,000 sq km of the Amazon, while Kenya and Namibia are close to finalising related agreements.
Gabon is considered a critical ecological stronghold in the Congo Basin. Nearly 90% of the country is covered by tropical rainforest, home to more than half of the world’s remaining African forest elephants and a quarter of all surviving western lowland gorillas.
Gabon Infini builds on a USD 500 million “debt-for-nature swap” concluded shortly before the 2023 military coup, which refinanced national debt and allocated funds for coastal protection. However, concerns about the country’s fiscal health persist: a draft 2026 budget approved in September nearly doubles public spending, with credit rating agencies warning the debt-to-GDP ratio could rise to almost 90%, up from 73% at the end of last year.
Maurice Ntossui Allogo, former minister and coordinator of the conservation effort, described Tuesday’s Letter of Intent as “a decisive milestone” for Gabon’s environmental ambitions.
Ryan Demmy Bidwell of The Nature Conservancy, which has supported the government in developing the plan, said the project would expand national parks and other protected areas to cover 30% of Gabon’s forests, up from the current 15%.
“We hope that Gabon will serve as a model for others in the Congo Basin and elsewhere in Africa,” Bidwell said.
