APRONAD accepted in the Declaration of the First 50 Carbon-Neutral Organizations, Panama

Panama, September 3, 2021, sent by the Directorate of Climate Change (DCC) of the Ministry of the Environment (MiAMBIENTE) to Mr. Francisco Rivas, President of APRONAD indicating:

The Directorate of Climate Change (DCC) of the Ministry of the Environment (MiAMBIENTE) is pleased to inform you that the Association for the Promotion of New Development Alternatives has satisfactorily complied with all the legal requirements to be part of the Declaration "The 50 First Carbon Organizations - Neutro ”, which groups together the first fifty (50) organizations in Panama committed to carbon neutrality by 2050, in line with the long-term objective of the Paris Agreement. This initiative, together with the Reduce Your Corporate Footprint - Carbon program, makes them part of the national climate action and recognizes them for their early action aligned with the national goal of keeping the country carbon negative by 2050.

The note adds:

It is important to emphasize that, in order to specify your participation in the Declaration and be a creditor of the seal of "The First 50" you must deliver your Action Plan towards carbon neutrality by 2050 according to the guidelines established in the Declaration Manual and comply with all the GHG emissions reporting requirements under the virtual platform of RTH Corporativo Carbon as of October 30, 2021. MiAMBIENTE reserves the right not to grant recognition to organizations that do not comply with the aforementioned requirements. The Declaration Manual will be posted on the virtual platform of RTH Corporativo - Carbon no later than September 15, 2021.

The APRONAD technical team on Climate Change is preparing the Action Plan, once the Manual is published by MiAmbiente.

GREENHOUSE GAS (GHG) COMPENSATION AGREEMENT

APRONAD develops the Project: "Panama Forests Conservation Project Reduction of GHG Emissions Through Deforestation and Avoided Degradation", an alliance of Indigenous Peoples and Rural Communities of Panama, The Project provides benefits such as mitigation against climate change by reducing emissions of GHG from unplanned deforestation that occurs due to historical and social factors; that contributes to the conservation of biodiversity, including the High Conservation Values related to the Protected Areas determinAed by the Panamanian State, and the promotion of sustainable development of local communities.

This project has been registered in VERRA (verra.org), under the VCS v4.0 standard, VCS Methodology VM0015 v1.1, CCB Standards Third Edition and is awaiting verification by AENOR. This project is expected to generate benefits for:

a) the protection of approximately 61,707.41 ha. of primary and secondary forests during the useful life of the project, located in the Protected Areas and their buffer zones. The project would prevent the release into the atmosphere of 11,195,383.00 tCO2e of GHG emissions in 30 years, with an annual average of 198.22 Ton / Co2e per hectare, and

b) forge a strategic alliance between indigenous peoples and peasants and agro-industrial companies, around the conservation of forests, helping to consolidate environmental governance.

APRONAD offers interested companies to compensate through this project, a total of 6,505,562.06 tons of CO2 not verified, corresponding to the year 2020, for a value to be agreed.

This project is in the verification process and will be certified in 2022, including CO removals for the period beginning in 2017 and until 2046.

For more information:

Francisco Rivas email apronad@gmail.com