From readiness to results:
How Uganda turned forest action into results-based climate finance
For more than a decade, Uganda has invested in forests as part of a long-term effort to translate forest action into predictable climate finance.
Through sustained engagement under the UN-REDD Programme, starting around 2009-2010, the country focused on readiness, institutional strengthening, and building the systems needed to turn forest conservation into measurable climate outcomes.
In 2025, that effort reached a milestone. Uganda became the first African country, and the first least developed country, to receive results-based payments for REDD+ from the Green Climate Fund. The approval of USD 31 million, in recognition of verified emissions reductions achieved between 2016 and 2017, marked a turning point for how forest-based climate action can be financed at scale in Africa.
Investing in Good Systems
This achievement was grounded in sustained investment in national systems. With support from FAO and the UN-REDD Programme, Uganda developed its National REDD+ Strategy and established a robust national Monitoring, Reporting and Verification system. This system enabled the country to track forest cover change, estimate emissions and removals, and apply safeguards in line with international standards.
First — African country and first least-developed country to receive GCF results-based payments for REDD+
approved in results-based payments
tonnes CO2e verified emissions reductions (2016–2017)
Uganda's REDD+ journey to this milestone
The credibility of Uganda’s data proved decisive. Transparent and consistent reporting made it possible to verify more than 8 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in emissions reductions for the 2016-2017 period – the results that unlocked results-based climate finance through the Green Climate Fund.
In the words of Mr. Bob Kazungu, Assistant Commissioner for Forestry (Assessment and Monitoring) and National REDD+ Focal Point for Uganda: “It is such a great opportunity for Uganda to see tangible results after a sixteen-year journey of REDD+. Thanks to the leadership of the Ministry of Water and Environment, in-country experts, the World Bank, the Austrian Development Agency, and the UN-REDD Programme, we finally have something concrete to show for our efforts.”
It is such a great opportunity for Uganda to see tangible results after a sixteen-year journey of REDD+. Thanks to the leadership of the Ministry of Water and Environment, in-country experts, the World Bank, the Austrian Development Agency, and the UN-REDD Programme, we finally have something concrete to show for our efforts.
Bob Kazungu | Assistant Commissioner for Forestry (Assessment and Monitoring) and National REDD+ Focal Point for Uganda:
As Uganda moves into the implementation phase of its results-based payment project, attention has turned to how these resources can be reinvested to sustain results over time.
In parallel with REDD+ implementation, Uganda has strengthened its understanding of how forests are financed through public budgets.
With support from FAO, under the UN-REDD Programme and the BIG-CHANCE project funded by Japan, the country undertook a public expenditure and policy coherence analysis of the forestry and land-use sectors. This work is now helping guide decisions on the use of proceeds, ensuring that results-based finance is reinvested in ways that are coherent with national land-use policies and capable of delivering lasting impact.
