February 14, 2019 The President of Suriname declared the adoption of the document known as the “Krutu of Paramaribo Joint Declaration”. This followed two days of presentations and appeals from delegations representing international organizations, civil society groups both local to Suriname and international, and official delegations of HFLD nations and other nations concerned for the protection of forests.

Krutu—an indigenous Surinamese word—means a gathering of significance or a gathering of high dignitaries, resulting in something that is workable.

Following the adoption, statements were made by delegations. Each delegation expressed its own reasons for attending this Krutu of Paramaribo, and for supporting the Joint Declaration. Country representatives shared the challenges their nations had experienced with existing methods of accessing climate finance.

All of the following expressed their commitment to work within the new grouping to support coordinated advocacy for improving access: Bahamas, Bhutan, Canada, Colombia, Republic of Congo, Costa Rica, Democratic Republic of Congo, Fiji, Finland, France on behalf of its highly forested department of French Guiana, Gabon, Ghana, Guyana, Malaysia, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Samoa, Sao Tome & Principe, Seychelles and Zambia.

The Krutu wishes to acknowledge the generous support and expressions of commitment received from institutions including the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO); Commission des Forêts d'Afrique Centrale (COMIFAC); United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Bank, and the Inter American Development Bank. The UNDP was a central and critical partner in organizing and facilitating this historic conference. Their contribution is greatly appreciated!

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