India Showcases Forest Restoration Work at COFO 28 in Rome

India placed its record on forest and landscape restoration before the 28th Session of the FAO Committee on Forestry (COFO 28), which opened in Rome on 28 September 2026 and runs to 2 October. In its statement India welcomed the Food and Agriculture Organization's focus on forest and landscape restoration and argued that sustainable forest management offers an integrated way to work at the landscape level while respecting national circumstances and the needs of local communities.

The numbers India put on record

The ranks come from the FAO Global Forest Resources Assessment 2025.

Carbon sink and the Bonn Challenge

India told the session that an additional carbon sink of 2.29 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent had been created by 2021, and that the country has raised its ambition to an additional sink of 3.5 to 4.0 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2035, measured against 2005 levels. Under the Bonn Challenge, India is committed to restoring 26 million hectares of degraded and deforested land by 2030; 21.76 million hectares have already been brought under restoration.

Landscape initiatives on show

Under the Aravalli Green Wall, roughly 6.45 million hectares of degraded land have been identified for restoration. Along the coast, the MISHTI initiative is restoring mangroves while strengthening climate resilience and supporting local livelihoods. India also presented Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam - Plant4Mother, described as a whole-of-government and whole-of-society effort under which more than 3.5 billion saplings have been planted.

What India asked of the world

The statement pressed the case that international cooperation must go past global pledges and support implementation led by the country itself, along with capacity development, technology transfer and outcomes that can be measured on the ground. India underlined the need for effective and sustainable financing for developing countries and urged the FAO to help them reach climate, biodiversity and blended finance and to build long-term restoration programmes.

Coherence and the proposed UN Decade

India sought closer alignment between the FAO's forestry work, the Global Forest Goals and other international forest processes, and called for stronger South-South and triangular cooperation to share knowledge and workable solutions. It also reaffirmed that it will work with the FAO and member states on shaping the proposed UN Decade for Afforestation and Reforestation in line with Sustainable Forest Management, 2027-2036.