The Brazilian and French presidents have announced a plan to invest 1.1 billion dollars in the Amazon, including parts of the rainforest in neighbouring French Guiana. The two countries’ governments said in a joint statement yesterday that the money will be spread over the next four years to protect the rainforest. It will be a collaboration of state-run Brazilian banks and France’s investment agency. Private resources will also be welcomed, Brazil and France said.
French President Emmanuel Macron and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva were meeting yesterday to revive the relationship between the countries after years of friction with former President Jair Bolsonaro, deepen cooperation to protect the rainforest and boost trade. Macron started his three-day visit to Brazil in the Amazon city of Belem, where he met his long-time ally Lula. The French president then took a boat to the Combu island to meet with Indigenous leaders.