Belém/Combu (dpa) – On a visit to the Amazon region of Brazil, Germany’s Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Labour Minister Hubertus Heil called for international support to combat deforestation and to promote sustainable development. “In the past we have contributed millions to the Amazon funds. One purpose of this visit is to provide millions more for this purpose,” Baerbock said. “We are also calling on other large countries to do the same.”
The Amazon is considered the lungs of the world and plays an important role in the international fight against climate change. It is spread across nine South American countries, Brazil has the largest share. The largest rainforest in the world covers an area of roughly 7 million square kilometres. According to the WWF nature protection organisation, it combines 12% of the world’s fresh water and 10% of all species in the world.
Labour Minister Heil stressed the importance of “fair trade”, including for environmental standards, “as the Earth only has one climate,” he said. He added that fair trade was important because the Amazon region “is one of the lungs of the world which we and our children need to breathe.” Heil also emphasised the importance of fair working and salary conditions for people in the region.