Book Description
This brief focuses on lessons from the extractive resource sectors (oil, gas and mining) for REDD+ benefit-sharing. Specifically, it examines the different ways that revenues accruing to the government are distributed to subnational levels and the outcomes of different arrangements for doing so. These lessons are particularly relevant for scenarios where REDD+ revenues might reach significant volumes. Two main sorts of revenue would need to be distributed in the case of REDD+: i) payments to central or sub-national governments from international sources for emissions reduced and ii) taxes and fees collected by central government from REDD+ activities (Irawan et al. 2014). In both cases, decisions are needed on how to redistribute revenue between central and sub-national levels. A key concern in decisions over public revenues is allocation across jurisdictions. In this paper, we look at the rationales behind the way revenues from the sector are shared both with sub-national governments and across extractive and non-extractive localities. This experience is relevant for key questions facing REDD+ such as how to link benefit to performance at the sub-national levels, how to compensate costs, how to distribute benefits across a nation and how to enhance development outcomes. In so doing, we address key concerns in the debate about REDD+ benefit-sharing. These include how REDD+ might act as an incentive for reducing deforestation and degradation, and how it might also be integrated into development planning to help achieve wider outcomes.
