Paraguay’s small and open economy is heavily dependent on commodity exports, in particular soy and beef, which account for close to 50% of total exports. These economic activities, among other drivers, have contributed to significant deforestation and degradation in the Alto Paraná Atlantic Forests (Paraguay’s largest continuous forest formation), as well as the deterioration of other natural resources and biodiversity.

Panama is one of the fastest-growing economies in Latin American, but some of this growth has led to the loss of more than 250,000 hectares of mature forest in less than a decade. Uncontrolled deforestation has increased erosion rates and the risk of desertification, which are expected to be aggravated by the effects of climate change.

Kenya has an estimated 3.5 million ha of forest and an additional 24.5 million ha of bush land. The country loses about 12,000 ha of forest each year through deforestation driven primarily by forest conversion for agriculture and infrastructure development. The remaining forests are degraded due to several factors, including unsustainable land use, illegal logging, uncontrolled grazing and exploitation for charcoal.

Guyana has an estimated 18.4 million ha of forests, accounting for about 85% of the country’s total land area. Much of these forests make up part of South America’s Guiana Shield, one of the largest remaining blocks of primary tropical forest on earth, containing the highest percentage of primary forest cover (over 90% is intact tropical forest) of any major tropical forested area. It is therefore critical for Guyana to choose a development pathway rooted in sustainable land use, including reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+).

Gabon is an equatorial country located at the western end of the Congo Basin rainforest, and is the second most forested country in the world. Substantial oil and mineral resources have helped to keep deforestation rates relatively low. The country’s main drivers of deforestation include some limited agricultural expansion, timber and fuelwood extraction, and infrastructure development.

In recent decades, Ethiopia has seen a decline in its forest cover, from 15 million ha in 1990 to 12.2 million ha in 2010. The country’s two most prominent drivers of deforestation and forest degradation are conversion of forests to agricultural land and unsustainable fuelwood consumption. These drivers have been enabled by deficiencies in Ethiopia’s regulatory and institutional environment. A lack of regulation combined with the absence of a strong, dedicated forestry institution have failed to adequately protect the country’s forests.

Forest cover represents about half of CAR’s total land area. The country’s increasing rate of deforestation and forest degradation has been attributed to several main drivers, including unsustainable livestock farming, slash-and-burn agriculture, informal and uncontrolled logging and collection of fuelwood and non-timber forest products, and infrastructure development.

In recent decades, deforestation and forest degradation has accelerated dramatically in Argentina, due to the expansion of soybean crops, among other large-scale commercial agricultural activities. The country’s increasing demand for agrofuels is also contributing to its deforestation problem. At the institutional level, Argentina’s forest policy and governance have been ineffective in mitigating these trends.