Restoration of Degraded Forest Areas Advances with the National Program of Productive Forests

Brazil will present to the world the implementation of a program focused on the sustainable development of rural communities in the Brazilian Amazon. The National Program of Productive Forests encourages the restoration of degraded areas through agroforestry systems, combining two specific objectives: generating income for people living in the forest and contributing to climate solutions through forest recovery.

Implemented by the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Family Agriculture (MDA), in partnership with the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MMA), the program is part of the Brazilian Government’s priority agenda for COP 30, the United Nations Climate Change Conference of 2025, which will take place in Belém do Pará, in the heart of the Amazon Forest, from November 10 to 21.

The main goal of the program is to restore altered or degraded areas through the production of healthy food and products derived from socio-biodiversity. The actions of the National Program of Productive Forests are based on forest restoration, expansion of technical assistance and rural extension, access to credit, financing for the development of agroforestry systems, and the promotion of agricultural practices more resilient to climate change.

By integrating crops, livestock, and forests, the initiative enables the recovery of degraded green areas by increasing the cultivation capacity of economically profitable foods such as cocoa, açaí, cupuaçu, and passion fruit—linking forest restoration to income generation. Moreover, the program’s pillars reverse the historical trend of deforestation driven by monocultures in the forest. With the diversity of species, forest recovery can make agroforestry systems more profitable per hectare than livestock farming.

In addition to valuing the cultivation of foods typical of socio-biodiversity, the Productive Forests program also encourages the production of crops such as pumpkin, watermelon, gherkin, okra, corn, beans, rice, papaya, pineapple, yam, and cassava. Adapted to short-term cultivation models, these foods make it possible to expand the program’s actions and offer immediate income to forest dwellers while tropical tree species grow and degraded green areas are restored.

“At COP30, Brazil will deliver the world’s largest reforestation program with productive forests and great prospects for economic development,” said Paulo Teixeira, Minister of Agrarian Development.

“The Productive Forests program responds to social, economic, and environmental demands, forming the perfect tripod for sustainable development. Brazil arrives at COP 30 with a solution for the country and for the entire world,” said Moisés Savian, Secretary of Land Governance, Territorial Development, and Socioenvironmental Affairs of the MDA.

Support

Technical Assistance and Rural Extension (ATER) form the foundation of the program, providing direct support to beneficiary families and strengthening sustainable agrifood production.

Investments

The National Program of Productive Forests has already received R$ 426 million in investments. Of this total, R$ 150 million were allocated by the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) using Amazon Fund resources through the “Restore Amazon” public call. Another R$ 50 million were provided by Caixa Econômica Federal through the CAIXA Socioenvironmental Fund (FSA CAIXA), in addition to R$ 52 million from the MDA, including the inaugural project implemented in the state of Pará. Through the “From Land to the Table” program, the MDA will also allocate R$ 88 million, and the National Supply Company (Conab) will invest R$ 86 million with Amazon Fund resources.

Amazon Fund

The “Restore Amazon” public call aims to restore Legal Reserve and Permanent Preservation Areas in Agrarian Reform Settlements through productive forest restoration and in alignment with the guidelines of the National Program of Productive Forests. With R$ 150 million, 17 proposals submitted by civil society entities and institutions will be supported for forest restoration in 80 agrarian reform settlements. The action is expected to restore 4,600 hectares, benefiting around 6,000 farming families and strengthening the forest restoration value chain in the Legal Amazon—especially in the so-called “Deforestation Arc,” a critical area stretching from eastern Maranhão to Acre. Each macroregion had its own call for projects focused on ecological and productive restoration in agrarian reform settlements, covering the states of Acre, Amazonas, Maranhão, Mato Grosso, Pará, Rondônia, and Tocantins.

CAIXA Socioenvironmental Fund (FSA)

Through its Socioenvironmental Fund, CAIXA allocated R$ 50 million to select projects aimed at regenerative agriculture and the recovery of degraded areas in the Deforestation Arc. A total of 88 proposals were received and are currently under evaluation and selection. Each project approved in the final stage will receive up to R$ 5 million. All states will have at least one project supported by the FSA. This initiative is expected to benefit 6,500 families and support the forest restoration of 3,000 hectares.

MDA

The state of Pará is the starting point of the National Program of Productive Forests. In the state, 18 settlement projects, two federal conservation units, and one quilombola territory were selected to implement sustainable production systems that combine family farming products with socio-bioeconomy and forest recovery. The R$ 15 million investment will serve 1,680 families and is expected to restore 1,008 hectares.

The “From Land to the Table” program will allocate R$ 86,090 to Amazonian organizations and another R$ 2.6 million for the modernization of the socio-biodiversity data management system. The MDA also plans to allocate an additional R$ 37 million for projects related to the program in the states of Amazonas, Acre, and Amapá. It is expected that, by the end of 2026, 7,646 families will be benefited and 1,593 hectares restored.

Other Partnerships

Petrobras has also joined the program by signing a memorandum of understanding to promote and support projects in family farming, environmental recovery and conservation, and just energy transition. The recovery of altered or degraded areas is aligned with the goals and actions of the Climate Plan – Mitigation and the National Plan for Native Vegetation Recovery (PLANAVEG), which calls for the restoration of 12 million hectares in rural areas.

The Productive Forests program aims to address major national challenges such as climate change, the increase in food supply, and higher income generation for rural families, while also helping Brazil meet its commitments under the Paris Agreement, approved by 195 countries in 2015, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions within the framework of sustainable development.