Landscape of Climate Finance for Land Use in Brazil 2021-2023

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI/PUC-RIO) analyzes climate finance for land use in Brazil from 2021 to 2023, focusing on agriculture and forests. It identifies a significant increase in annual average flows to US$ 17.1 billion, driven primarily by domestic private resources and rural credit. The document details the roles of various financial instruments, the impact of public policies like the Agricultural Plan and RENOVABIO, and the distribution of funds across mitigation, adaptation, and loss and damage objectives.

• Climate finance for land use in Brazil grew significantly between 2021 and 2023, reaching an annual average of US$ 17.1 billion, a 99% increase from the US$ 8.6 billion annual average recorded between 2015 and 2020. This growth is partly attributed to a higher rate of self-reporting of sustainable practices by producers to secure better credit terms.
• Domestic finance is the primary driver of the land use climate agenda in Brazil, accounting for 97% of tracked resources (US$ 16.6 billion per year). Within this domestic flow, private sources provided 72% (US$ 11.9 billion per year), while international flows contributed only 3% (US$ 551 million per year).
• Rural credit is the most utilized financial instrument, channeling US$ 9.9 billion per year (58% of total tracked climate finance). However, this represents only 15.5% of the total annual rural credit operations in Brazil, which averaged US$ 63.7 billion. A significant portion of this climate-aligned credit (23%) is categorized as such solely due to the recording of no-till farming in the SICOR system.
• Agriculture risk management instruments, including PROAGRO and the Rural Insurance Premium Subsidy Program (PSR), mobilized US$ 2.6 billion per year. These are the primary tools for climate adaptation, providing US$ 1.4 billion per year (54% of all adaptation flows).
• Spending on climate loss and damage saw a sharp increase from US$ 0.4 billion in 2021 to US$ 2.0 billion in 2023, a growth of 386%. These flows primarily consist of federal government compensations for agricultural losses, with 93% (US$ 1.1 billion per year) directed to PROAGRO.
• The crop sector is the largest recipient of climate finance, receiving US$ 12.4 billion per year (74% of total flows). In contrast, the forest sector received US$ 1.6 billion per year (9%), with native forests relying heavily on the federal public budget, which provided 70% of its funding (US$ 420 million per year).
• Thematic bonds raised an average of US$ 2.5 billion per year (14% of total finance), primarily benefiting bioenergy and biofuels (44%) and forests (37%). However, their use in the land use sector declined sharply from US$ 4.2 billion in 2021 to US$ 0.5 billion in 2023.
• International finance is dominated by multilateral development banks (61% of international flows), with the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) and the World Bank as the largest contributors. International governments provided 29% of these flows, with Germany and Norway contributing 77% of the funds destined for the native forest sector.
• The Amazon Fund resumed operations on January 1, 2023, after a suspension between 2019 and 2023. In 2023, it approved five projects mobilizing US$ 26 million, with new grants announced totaling R$ 3.1 billion (US$ 626 million).
• The BNDES plays a crosscutting role, providing low-cost credit, managing the Amazon Fund, and operating the reimbursable resources of the Climate Fund. Its direct and indirect operations for land use mobilized an average of US$ 422 million per year, with 67% focused on the biofuel production chain.

APA

Chiavari, J., Souza, P., Motta, M., Florias, R., & Minsky, E. (2024). Landscape of Climate Finance for Land Use in Brazil 2021-2023. Climate Policy Initiative. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Landscape-Climate-Finance-Land-Use-Brazil-2021-2023.pdf

Chicago

Chiavari, Joana, Priscila Souza, Miguel Motta, Renan Florias, and Eduardo Minsky. Landscape of Climate Finance for Land Use in Brazil 2021-2023. Climate Policy Initiative, 2024. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Landscape-Climate-Finance-Land-Use-Brazil-2021-2023.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Chiavari |first1=Joana |last2=Souza |first2=Priscila |last3=Motta |first3=Miguel |last4=Florias |first4=Renan |last5=Minsky |first5=Eduardo |title=Landscape of Climate Finance for Land Use in Brazil 2021-2023 |publisher=Climate Policy Initiative |date=November 2024 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Landscape-Climate-Finance-Land-Use-Brazil-2021-2023.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{chiavari2024landscape, author = {Chiavari, Joana and Souza, Priscila and Motta, Miguel and Florias, Renan and Minsky, Eduardo}, title = {{Landscape of Climate Finance for Land Use in Brazil 2021-2023}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2024}, month = nov, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Landscape-Climate-Finance-Land-Use-Brazil-2021-2023.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }