On November 17, 2024, U.S. President Joe Biden arrived in Manaus, marking the first visit by a sitting American president to the Amazon region. Following this, he will attend the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro until November 19.
The visit underscores Biden's commitment to environmental preservation, particularly in the context of climate change. The White House announced that the U.S. will donate an additional $50 million to the Amazon Fund, which builds on a previous commitment made during Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's visit to the U.S. in February 2023.
At that time, the Brazilian government had expressed disappointment over the initial U.S. announcement. However, Biden later indicated that the U.S. aims to contribute a total of $500 million to the Amazon Fund over five years.
In a statement, the White House revealed that the U.S. is on track to meet its historical commitment to increase international climate financing to over $11 billion annually by 2024, a figure six times higher than what was provided at the start of Biden's presidency in 2021.
Despite these efforts, the European Union remains the largest global contributor to climate financing. Approximately half of all climate financing is channeled through multilateral funds co-managed by developing countries, leading to criticism of the U.S. preference for bilateral funding.
A study by the British think tank ODI ranked the U.S. second to last among 23 nations in terms of progress on providing a 'fair share' of climate financing, based on its carbon footprint, population size, and gross national income.
Among the initiatives announced during Biden's visit are the launch of a coalition for forest restoration and bioeconomy, which includes BTG Pactual and 12 partners, and a $37.5 million contribution from the U.S. Development Finance Corporation (DFC) for a reforestation project developed by Mombak Gestora de Recursos.
The White House also mentioned additional initiatives aimed at leveraging demand for carbon credits, a new cooperation agreement between BNDES and the DFC, and partnerships with the Brazilian government, universities, and NGOs to combat illegal logging.
This visit marks Biden's final trip to South America before handing over the presidency to Donald Trump, who has expressed skepticism regarding climate change. During his visit, Biden is scheduled to take an aerial tour of part of the Amazon, meet with local and indigenous leaders, and visit the Amazon Museum (Musa) located in the Adolpho Ducke Forest Reserve.