The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) LATIN AMERICA AND CARIBBEAN | Colombia | IBRD/IDA | Investment Project Financing (IPF) | FY 2015 | Seq No: 20 | Archived on 23-Sep-2024 | ISR01595 Implementing Agencies: IDEAM, Instituto SINCHI de Investigación Amazónica, Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, Parques Nacionales Naturales 1. OBJECTIVE 1.1 Development Objective Original Development Objective (Approved as part of Approval package on 07-Dec-2014) The project's global environmental objective (GEO) is the same as the project's development objective (PDO), namely, to improve governance and promote sustainable land use activities in order to reduce deforestation and conserve biodiversity in the Project area. Has the Development Objective been changed since Board Approval of the Project Objective? No 2. COMPONENTS Name 1. Protected Areas Management and Financial Sustainability:(Cost 4,560,000.00) 2. Sustainable forest and water management and use:(Cost 9,000,000.00) 3. Governance, Policies and Incentives:(Cost 1,310,000.00) 4.Project Coordination, Communications, Monitoring and Evaluation:(Cost 3,500,000.00) 3. OVERALL RATINGS Name Previous Current Progress towards achievement of PDO Satisfactory Satisfactory Overall Implementation Progress (IP) Satisfactory Satisfactory Overall Risk Rating Substantial Substantial Sep 24, 2024 Page 1 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) 4. KEY ISSUES & STATUS 4.1 Implementation Status and Key Decisions This is an interim ISR summarizing implementation progress between january and june, 2024. The implementation support mission will occur after submission of this ISR as per request for postponement by the counterparts. The mission will allow for the team to gather more information and discuss project accomplishments and challenges since the last reporting period. Based on any significant changes or updates, a new ISR will be prepared. The information comes from the report submitted by the project implementation unit and implementation support meetings that periodically happen between members of this unit and WB staff to review progress and compliance with safeguards. Progress towards achieving the PDO and implementation progress remain satisfactory. Despite rising challenges due to internal conflict, the project continues making progress in the development and intermediate outcomes, especially those related to improved management of protected areas and increased areas under sustainable management practices. As the Government of Colombia expands its strategy to halt deforestation and restore degraded areas in the Amazon region, the Heart of the Amazon project continues being an important reference to other projects, covering over 30% of the Amazon territory, with lessons in multiple topics ranging from the participatory institutional arrangements, community engagement, mainstreaming environmental criteria in other sectors that can potentially drive deforestation, and providing a development pathway that ensures communities benefit from conserved, standing and well managed forests. From 2022 to 2023, deforestation decreased by 38% in the Amazon region. This decreased deforestation is associated with the government’s efforts on needed policy changes, enforcement and on the ground decisions, some of which are not directly related to the project’s activities. However, better management of protected areas, increased areas under sustainable management plans under implementation, are concrete outcomes that have been achieved by the project that do contribute to decrease deforestation. Next year, the project will complete 10 years since the original financing became effective and two additional financings included over this duration of the project. The coming mission will be part of an intentional effort from the coordination team to gather lessons learned to be disseminated to diverse audiences. The project is one that can demonstrate the power of: long term government commitment, resilience and adaptive management to government policy changes, participatory approaches towards integrated conservation and sustainable development, risk management related to conflict in the region, building trustful relationships between communities and the governments as an essential enabler for peace building. 5. SYSTEMATIC OPERATIONS RISK-RATING TOOL Rating at Approval Last Approved Rating Risk Category Approval Package - ISR Seq. 019 - 05 Apr Proposed Rating 08 Dec 2014 2024 Sep 24, 2024 Page 2 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) Political and Governance Moderate Moderate Moderate Macroeconomic Moderate Moderate Moderate Sector Strategies and Policies Moderate Moderate Moderate Technical Design of Project or Program Moderate Moderate Moderate Institutional Capacity for Implementation and Moderate Moderate Moderate Sustainability Fiduciary Moderate Moderate Moderate Environment and Social Moderate Moderate Moderate Stakeholders Moderate Moderate Moderate Other Substantial Substantial Substantial Overall Moderate Substantial Substantial Sep 24, 2024 Page 3 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) 6. RESULTS 6.1 PDO Indicators by PDO Outcomes Baseline Actual (Current) Closing Period Indicator Name Value Month/Year Value Date Value Month/Year Comments on achieving targets Current value reflects the year 2023 for 9 national protected areas and 3 regional ones. The actual number of hectares with improved management declined because of: 1. a decrease in the METT value in one protected area (Picachos NPA, whose strategic plan was not fully completed), and 2. the increase in the value for two regional PAs was not what was estimated for Terrestrial protected areas under that year (Serrania de la Lindosa and Bajo Guayabero). The project continues improved management effectiveness supporting the activities to improve management, bearing in mind that not all (Hectare(Ha)) decisions lie within the scope of the project. The adoption of the management plan for La Lindosa depends on a consultation with indigenous communities that was requested in 2023 and goes beyond the project’s scope. For Picachos PA, a consultant has been hired to work in the strategic plan to be completed by the end of 2024.On the declaration of Bajo Guayabero area, see comment in indicator below. Comments on achieving targets No change compared to the past semester. However, community-forestry Areas under new or improved plans were designed, and training activities conducted in the 4 NDFyB of integrated sustainable management intervention. Forest inventories were conducted to identify potential for value plans as a result of project activities chains, and studies to obtain the licenses to produce and commercialize (excluding PA) (Hectare(Ha)) specific NTFPs. When new agreements are signed, the corresponding hectares will be tracked in the indicator. With field visits and remote sensing, Page 4 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) compliance with previous agreements was verified with a level of compliance above 80%. In addition, action plans with indigenous communities are being designed or under implementation to recover and disseminate knowledge on native species, dyes for handcrafts, and local languages. The project continued working with the communities of the EFI and Tarapoto Lakes wetlands in the implementation of their management plans, including community monitoring and tourism activities. Comments on achieving targets No new areas are expected. However, the process towards the declaration of the new regional Bajo Guayabero PA, that was prioritized by the government, continues making some progress with new studies that justify its importance in terms of connectivity with other key PAs, and its biophysical value and existing socioeconomic dynamics. The analysis concluded that, if the rate of New areas of environmental fragmentation continues, due to transformations caused by agriculture, the significance brought under legal natural ecosystems of the Bajo Guayabero run the risk of losing their protection (biodiversity conservation, functionality. Regardless of the project’s target, achieving the declaration of avoided deforestation) (Hectare(Ha)) this new protected area has encountered challenges, but the project has persevered in supporting the government in this activity to protect a strategic area for connectivity. If the final formal declaration is not achieved during the project’s lifetime, support will still be provided for conservation and non deforestation activities. Comments on achieving targets The area under sustainable management practices reported in the previous period was maintained. The fact the indicator value has no change, does not reflect the complete scope and multiple steps being accomplished. Land area under sustainable Consultations towards new agreements, land use planning at farm level, landscape management practices forest inventories in the nuclei are among the activities delivered. Hectares (Hectare(Ha)) under sustainable management practices will only be registered when the management plan for community forestry is presented to the environmental authorities. Review of the status of the farms with already signed agreements have proven more demanding in terms of costs and time than expected and this has also shifted project’s efforts. GHG emission levels established Page 5 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) annually for the Amazon Region by Comments on achieving targets The project continues to measure greenhouse gas emissions from IDEAM (Number) deforestation on an annual basis in accordance with the methodology implemented by IDEAM and the Ministry of the Environment. Compared to the official report for 2022, the results obtained for 2023 show that the deforestation was reduced by 36% at the national level (79,256 hectares deforested), and that, for the Colombian Amazon, it was reduced by 38% (44,274 hectares deforested). It is worth noting that in 2023 in the Colombian Amazon, deforestation was the lowest in the last 23 years. The reports which have been disseminated as needed, also indicate that the protected areas with higher reduction in deforestation were those ones in the Amazon. 6.2 Intermediate Results Indicators by Components Not Categorized Baseline Actual (Current) Closing Period Indicator Name Value Month/Year Value Date Value Month/Year Mechanism for funding of PA system Comments on achieving targets The closing conditions to consider HeCo operational were met in previous in Colombia designed and operational periods with the support of project resources and co-financing. With the (Colombia Heritage- HECO) mechanism in place, activities have been focused on supporting (Number) implementation of activities with indigenous communities that contribute to HeCo’s conservation goals. Comments on achieving targets The indicator value already surpassed the expected amount. In terms of Leverage funding for the national additional funding to secure the sustainability of the mechanism its worth financing mechanism for protected highlighting the commitment from the GoC to allocate 17% of the area system (Amount(USD)) governments Fund for Life and Biodiversity to HeCo. This Fund receives 80% of the carbon tax established by the country at national level. A review of the Page 6 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) first years of HeCo since its inception will provide lessons to National Parks for the years to come. Comments on achieving targets No new hectares were reported this semester. The project made progress in the identification and selection of new potential areas for restoration, applying biophysical and socio-cultural criteria, both inside and outside protected areas. Existent community led nurseries continued preparing seedlings. Monitoring of existent restoration areas is ongoing, and technical assistance to improve management practices continued. Restoration in Area of land restored (Hectare(Ha)) indigenous reserves under traditional practices continues as planned. In addition, adjustments have been made in areas of intervention in cases of intensified conflict, and together with communities and government entities, and following safeguard procedures, the project has either suspended activities until things improve or for a couple of cases its exploring moving the activities to other areas. Comments on achieving targets An increase in the indicator was achieved. This is the result of engaging 22 new beneficiaries (including 2 women) in the monitoring, surveillance, and Farmers reached with agricultural control program in the Ramsar EFI. On the other hand, 947 beneficiaries who assets or services (Number) signed agreements last semester remain engaged and participating in project activities. Farmers reached with agricultural assets or services - Female (Number) Comments on achieving targets The number of agreements signed and under implementation remains. Number of agreements w/ sectors Agreements with municipal governments to incorporate environmental driving deforestation on land-use criteria in their road infrastructure plans were renewed and there are ongoing plan, strat for integrated landscape conversations with new municipalities. The format of these Memorandums of manag, policies or regulations, signed Understanding with the municipal government was adjusted to broaden the and under implementa (Number) scope of the support and technical advice to be provided. The scope of the new agreement includes: (i) inventory of land accesses and development of the Municipal Road Plan, (ii) apply the Green Road Infrastructure Guidelines Page 7 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) (LIVV), the Environmental Management Guide for Tertiary Roads, the Guide to diagnose the running over of Wildlife in Colombia and the Guide for Fauna Passages in Linear Infrastructure, (i) studies for the Environmental License process for roads classified as illegal that have a high social and economic importance. Number of properties at the Comments on achieving targets This goal was met in the second semester of 2021. agricultural frontier that have been subject to zoning (Number) Comments on achieving targets During this semester, the number of direct beneficiaries of the project's investments increased with 374 new participants in capacity building activities, 127 of which are women. During this period, the project continued to adopt strategies to increase not only attendance, especially indigenous and Number of direct beneficiaries rural women, where their participation has been lower. A lesson learned with disaggregated by gender (Number) the consolidation of this indicator is that the formats of the attendance lists need to be adjusted to clearly identify the new people who are joining the project and to differentiate those who are accompanying and/or facilitators participating in the training. Percentage of women (Percentage) Comments on achieving targets Training by IDEAM to other environmental authorities continues to result in increased capacity to generate accurate data on natural forest and deforestation at national and regional levels. With the goal of providing Strengthened capabilities of training on specific relevant environmental protection themes, four environmental authorities for forest workshops were held with the participation of the technical teams of the monitoring according to specific Environmental Authority, local governments, the police’s Rural Security action plans (Number) Directorate. The training focused on monitoring deforestation and forest cover, control of deforestation and wildlife trafficking, and deforestation alerts. Satisfaction surveys were conducted and assessments done to track increased capabilities. Early warning system (deforestation Page 8 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) alerts) in the Amazon region Comments on achieving targets In this semester, IDEAM generated and published the Early Deforestation operational according to defined Alert Bulletins (AT-DD) No.37 (Quarter IV of 2023) and No.38 (Quarter I of criteria (Number) 2024), which present the results of monitoring forest loss and deforestation drivers, resulting from the automated processes of coverage analysis based on satellite images in the Colombian Amazon. These two bulletins become the required deforestation alerts and complete the total four expected per year. Comments on achieving targets In this semester, 97% of the people that responded the surveys indicated a satisfactory or highly satisfactory level on the effectiveness and relevance of Levels of satisfaction on the the training provided. A total of 207 surveys were analyzed, following the effectiveness and relevance of training methodology and instrument for their application. and knowledge exchange events (Percentage) Regarding specific questions included in the survey, 97% of respondents considered that the objectives of the trainings were achieved; 93% considered that the topics and contents were clear; and, 80% that the practical exercises and tools were useful to increase understanding of the topic. Comments on achieving targets In the first half of 2024, twenty eight (28) grievances were submitted to the project through the virtual and in person channels. Additional options for Grievances registered related to submitting grievances or requests, plus the increased visibility of the project delivery of project benefits that are intervening in the NDFyB, has resulted in more requests for information. Most addressed (Percentage) of them were requests for information or support from the project, and all cases were timely attended, managed, and resolved. Training on the mechanism was agreed to happen with new team members. Page 9 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) 7. DATA ON FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE 7.1 Cumulative Disbursements 7.2 Disbursements (by loan) Loan/Credit/TF Status Original Revised Cancelled Disbursed Undisbursed % Disbursed TF-B5182 Effective 18.37 18.37 0.00 3.98 14.39 21.64% TF-A5789 Effective 12.00 12.00 0.00 12.00 0.00 100.00% TF-18478 Closed 10.40 10.37 0.00 10.37 0.00 100.00% 7.3 Key Dates (by loan) Loan/Credit/TF Status Approval Signing Effectiveness Orig. Closing Rev. Closing Sep 24, 2024 Page 10 of 11 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Forest Conservation and Sustainability in the Heart of the Colombian Amazon (P144271) TF-18478 Closed 21-Jan-2015 21-Jan-2015 02-Mar-2015 30-Jun-2019 30-Jun-2019 TF-A5789 Effective 31-Oct-2017 07-Nov-2017 07-Nov-2017 30-Jun-2022 30-Nov-2024 TF-B5182 Effective 30-Apr-2021 13-May-2021 05-Oct-2021 30-Nov-2024 30-Sep-2026 8. KEY DATES Key Events Planned Actual Approval 05-Dec-2014 08-Dec-2014 Effectiveness 07-Aug-2018 02-Mar-2015 Mid-Term Review No. 01 03-Feb-2020 02-Mar-2020 Operation Closing/Cancellation 30-Sep-2026 9. RESTRUCTURING HISTORY Restructuring Level 2 Approved on 15-Jun-2022 Restructuring Level 2 Approved on 20-Dec-2023 10. ASSOCIATED OPERATION(S) There are no associated operations Sep 24, 2024 Page 11 of 11