Institutional Mechanisms for REDD+ - Case Studies Working Paper

project, the first to be registered as a CDM project, is widely used as a reference in REDD+ discussions, as it
illustrates a project launched by a private company, on non-forested areas, where customary tenure was not
perceived to be secure. This project is presented in Section 2.3 of this document.
To ensure REDD+ projects carried out by outside organizations (firms, NGOs) do benefit local
communities, including those lacking clear tenure, the NC-REDD+ is proposing that the official registration
of REDD+ projects be conditional upon their ability to demonstrate that they respect internationally
recognized social standards (e.g., Climate, Community and Biodiversity Alliance Standards [CCBA]). In a
draft version of the official REDD+ procedures shared in May, 2011, the NC-REDD+ would require that
REDD+ projects demonstrate that local communities and indigenous people gave their full, prior and
informed consent to the project, and that they signed an agreement on benefit-sharing with those who are
developing the projects.
The use of social agreements is also supported by many Congolese NGOs, who propose to follow the model
recently created for logging concessions. The implementation of this model has just begun in DRC (the
implementation regulation was adopted in June 2010). This model of social agreements is presented in further
detail in Section 2.4.
BOX 2.3: REVENUE-SHARING RULE ESTABLISHED BY THE 2006 CONSTITUTION
AND THE 2002 FOREST CODE
The 2006 Constitution, Article 175, establishes that 40 percent of national revenue collected by
provincial governments is kept at the Province level (40 percent of which is allocated to subprovincial
government entities), and 60 percent is transferred to central government. The
Constitution does not regulate how these funds should be used at the Province level, and the
practice has been that they have been allocated to cover government and administration operational
costs.
This disposition of the Constitution has not been fully applied yet, as the Treasury (central
government) has continued to centralize collection of revenues generated by exploitation of forests
and mining through export taxes.
In addition to this constitutional provision, the 2002 Forest Code introduced two important
innovations specific to the forestry sector:
� 40 percent of the annual area tax on logging concessions is transferred from the Treasury to the
Provinces where the concessions are located, with the specific mandate to use these funds for
public interest works and infrastructure (Forest Code, Article 122); and
� Industrial logging companies are required to sign with local communities adjacent to their
concessions a negotiated social agreement, indicating what benefits and services the companies
will provide to the communities, such as roads, health and education centers, or transportation
services (Forest Code, Article 89 and Arrêté 028 establishing a model for social agreements).
A similar provision is included in the Mining Code (unlike the oil and gas sector where benefits to
communities are negotiated on a contract basis without any legal requirement).
2.3 ILLUSTRATION OF A PROJECT-BASED BENEFIT-SHARING
ARRANGEMENT: THE IBI-BATÉKÉ PROJECT
The Ibi estate is located on the Batéké Plateau, approximately 150 kilometers from the capital Kinshasa. It is
part of the village of Mbankana, Maluku municipality. The Batéké plateau is 90 percent covered with
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