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The Nii Kaniti REDD+ project is having a critical positive impact on reducing global emissions by the avoided deforestation of a highly threatened area of the Peruvian Amazon. But it’s not just carbon that this project addresses. By working alongside seven indigenous communities of the Shipibo-Conibo and Cacataibo ethnic origin, the project, implemented by Peruvian NGO AIDER, is also conserving key biodiversity and empowering local people through improved livelihoods. Bringing clean water to these communities is one of many programmes initiated by the project that’s delivering measurable positive outcomes to local people.

For example, in the community of Pueblo Nuevo, one of the seven involved communities, families traditionally sourced water from the Ucayali River, which was often prone to carrying waterborne diseases. However, AIDER recently coordinated the installation of two water soil pumps, funded by climate finance, which are now delivering clean water to more than 200 people who use the water daily to wash and cook. The pumps, which extend 30m into the ground, filter water from the soil which is then stored in two towers and distributed throughout the community. Locals are already benefiting from them, not just through the clean water they generate, but also, for women in particular, through the time returned that was before spent on collecting water.

As a REDD+ project, Nii Kaniti receives climate finance from the sale of carbon credits to fund activities that conserve the forest and nurture local communities. These funds, which are dedicated to placing a value on a tree standing, rather than cut down, are also equally instrumental to enabling key infrastructure projects like this one. With support from AIDER, indigenous communities such as Pueblo Nuevo are empowered to make their own decisions about how finance will be used to deliver the most transformative results for their families.

As mentioned in a previous blog, one in three people globally do not have access to safe drinking water, with the United Nations stating that “water is the primary medium through which we will feel the effects of climate change”. It’s great to see infrastructure projects like this one taking shape across Nii Kaniti’s seven involved communities, and further instilling resilience in the lives of so many people.

Contact us to learn more about how your business can support the Nii Kaniti project as part of a high-integrity pathway to net zero.