The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) has tried to build capacity to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) in several parts of the Hindu Kush Himalaya. One of its initiatives is in the Indian state of Mizoram, which has the largest forest cover of any state in India, but which is severely degraded. A workshop on 25–26 April 2018 in Mizoram brought together multiple stakeholders (44 participants) to prepare a State REDD Action Plan (SRAP) for the state with input from experts. The workshop was followed by an expert consultation on 28 April in Aizwal, Mizoram. Experts acknowledged that the SRAP would be the first of its kind in India, and if successful would be replicated in Uttarakhand.

To organize the workshop, ICIMOD’s regional REDD+ initiative partnered with the Advanced Research Centre for Bamboo and Rattan (ARCBR) of the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) and the State Department of Environment, Forests and Climate Change in Mizoram. During the opening event, V.R.S. Rawat, Assistant Director General of ICFRE, talked about the emergence of REDD+ as an international mechanism to address climate change. Bhaskar Karky, Programme Coordinator of Regional REDD+ Initiative at ICIMOD, explained that the SRAP procedure and methodology is based on international best practices developed for Vietnam and two districts in Nepal.

The workshop was attended by officials from ARCBR; the Environment, Climate Change and Forest Department (ECCF); Mizoram University; District Forest Offices; Mizoram Science Technology and Innovation Council; local NGOs; ICFRE; ICIMOD; and members of the media.

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