Thailand’s landscape is a complex mosaic of agriculture and forests. Since the 1960s, the country has seen an overall decrease in forest cover from 53% to 31%. Population growth has increased demand for forest and agricultural products which has contributed to the country’s rising levels of deforestation and forest degradation. Continued deforestation is expected to adversely affect the livelihoods of a large number of forest-dependent people as well as Thailand’s environmental sustainability. 

Tanzania is endowed with 35.3 million ha of rich forest resources including woodlands, coastal forests, mangrove swamps, tropical rainforest and grassland savannas. These resources are however threatened by shifting cultivation, wildfires, illegal logging, mining and fuel wood extraction, as well as the more recent introduction of large-scale bio-fuel farming. 

Forests are virtually everywhere in Suriname, covering 95% of the country’s total land area. While Suriname has a relatively low rate of deforestation, timber production has dramatically increased in recent years. Together with active mining and agriculture sectors, Suriname is now at an early stage of the forest transition curve, with deforestation and related emissions expected to rise in the coming years.

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.

Peru has approximately 73 million ha of forests, of which almost 69 million hectares or 94% of total land area are found in the country’s Amazon region. On a global scale, Peru’s extensive forests rank ninth in the world in terms of forest cover, fourth in terms of tropical forests, and second among the Amazonian countries. Although Peru has extensive forests, they contribute little to the national economy. Forest management has been historically been weak, resulting in inadequate forestry budgets and the conversion of the forests into focal points of social conflict.

Madagascar is one of eight largest biodiversity hotspots in the world, and is considered a priority conservation area due to a disconcerting number of species threatened with extinction. Despite major biodiversity conservation efforts, ecosystems in the country’s eastern forest are so fragmented and degraded that many native large animal species have been lost. Madagascar’s direct drivers of deforestation include small-scale agriculture, energy production, artisanal and illegal mining, forest harvesting, and livestock practices.

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.

The area of highest priority for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in Nicaragua is its Caribbean Coast that contains 80% (3.2 million ha) of Nicaragua’s total forest area, and is home to the country’s Bosawas Biosphere Reserve and Indio Maiz Biological Reserve. The Caribbean Coast has been a major source of deforestation and forest degradation in Nicaragua, driven primarily by extensive livestock and agricultural production, forest fires, firewood collection and logging.

Liberia’s forests are extremely rich in biodiversity and are recognized as a global conservation hotspot. The country has approximately 6.6 million ha of lowland tropical forests that form part of the remaining Upper Guinea forests of West Africa. 

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.