Restore, Conserve and Protect Forest and Tree Cover in India (RECAP4NDC), implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH under Indo-German bilateral cooperation, is a six-year initiative commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUKN) under the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Federal Government. It supports India"s commitments under the National Forest Policy and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) by restoring degraded forests and landscapes, enhancing ecosystem services (ES), and improving livelihoods for forest-dependent communities. The project collaborates with India"s Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEFCC) as the political partner and is executed by a consortium comprising GIZ (overall coordination), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) India office, Forest Survey of India (FSI), The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), Indian Council for Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), and the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).
Operating across four Indian states-Delhi National Capital Region (NCR), Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Uttarakhand-the project addresses diverse ecological and socio-economic challenges. In Delhi NCR it tackles urban encroachment and promotes urban tree cover restoration. In Gujarat it focuses on coastal degradation and grassland management, including the Aravalli ridge. Maharashtra tests FLR approaches across varied agro-climatic zones, while Uttarakhand enhances community forestry and addresses forest fire and invasive species management. By 2029, RECAP4NDC aims to bring approximately 150,000 hectares of forest landscapes under restoration, benefiting 10 million people through improved ES such as water availability, soil stability, habitat enhancement, and climate regulation. The project aligns with the Bonn Challenge, emphasizing forest landscape restoration (FLR) to restore ecological functionality, strengthen landscape resilience, and promote sustainable management of forests, agroforestry, and trees outside forests. The project promotes gender equality, environmental protection, and human rights by ensuring equal access to opportunities, sustainable practices, and inclusive decision-making.
The contract under this project involves developing a comprehensive methodology for ecosystem services assessment and valuation (ESAV) across 12 model sites spanning 151,475 hectares in the four states. It includes defining a broader 400,000-hectare landscape to capture the spatial and temporal dynamics of key ES, such as provisioning (e.g., water, timber, fodder), regulating (e.g., climate regulation, flood control), supporting (e.g., soil formation, biodiversity habitats), and aesthetic services (e.g., cultural and recreational values). The contract encompasses stakeholder consultations with State Forest Departments (SFDs), local communities, and consortium partners to prioritize two to three ES per site, ensuring alignment with local needs and ecological conditions.The contractor will conduct geospatial analyses using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), establish baselines, develop monitoring protocols, and model future scenarios to assess ES changes.
Additionally, the contract emphasizes capacity building to integrate ES into policy and planning. This includes training field staff, village representatives, and decision-makers using the Integrating Ecosystem Services into Development Planning (IES) approach, fostering awareness and technical skills for sustainable forest management.
The contract's deliverables include a multidisciplinary ESAV methodology and assessment results, cartography of the 400,000-hectare landscape, monitoring reports, scenario models, and conducting trainings. These efforts will support India's NDC targets, strengthen ecological and socio-economic resilience, and contribute to global climate and biodiversity goals, while fostering collaboration among public, private, and community stakeholders for long-term sustainability.