The demand for high-value food commodities, such as palm oil, increases pressure on forests and contributes to deforestation, while unsustainable logging in natural forests contributes to forest degradation. Several public and private policy responses have emerged to reduce deforestation and forest degradation. Banks, development finance institutions and institutional investors can play an important role to shift towards sustainable practices of forest management.

Potential discussion topics:

• Public and private institutional arrangements, and linking public and private investment and finance, for enhancing the sustainability of commodity supply and promoting conservation values
• Responsible investments, inclusive business models and finance to reduce the pressure on forests, integrate smallholders and deliver positive impacts across social, economic and environmental dimensions
• Improvements in smallholder and small medium enterprises across to responsible finance
• Facilitating access to international financing mechanisms as well as national public and private-sector sources
• Enhancement of regional cooperation