Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much funding the Government is providing to the World Bank to prevent deforestation; over what period such funding will be provided; and how many hectares of rainforest are being protected from such deforestation.

The UK Government is providing £215 million through the World Bank to support a number of interventions that collectively address the drivers of deforestation. These comprise a range of medium to long term initiatives, starting between 2009 and 2013 and due to end between 2020 and 2028.

A number of the programmes are still being established. However, from projects approved so far, 2.5m hectares of forest have been targeted for protection. Some of the projects will also support the livelihoods of those that depend on forests as well as addressing forest protection.