The Kyoto Protocol which ends in 2012 addresses emissions reductions do not cover forests, which experts have claimed are responsible for close to 20% of man-made global carbon emissions. This works out to almost two billion tonnes of carbon annually.

Kristalina Georgieva, director of strategy and operations in the World Bank's sustainable development unit said, "We want to make sure that if it is 20 percent of the problem it can be 20 percent of the solution in the future."

Georgieva hopes the program will induce the public and private sector to invest in the fight against deforestation.

She said, "The objective here is to make standing forest with high biodiversity and carbon storage value generate revenues. It means we can make a tree standing be as valuable as this tree being chopped down, to provide income to communities that would allow them to develop and have their needs met without chopping down the forest."

The proposed Forest Carbon Partnership Facility is expected to be launched in December 2007, said Georgieva.

Developing nations would be equipped to monitor forests and have the clout to halt illegal logging. Countries that were able to cut deforestation rates and subsequently emissions would be given the chance to sell carbon credits to other countries.

So far, most deforestation in developing nations are credited to cultivation, logging or infrastructure building. However, nations such as Indonesia have an additional problem to deal with: slash-and-burn techniques to clear land which result in haze across South East Asia. While the World Bank scheme may assist in encouraging nations to monitor and control logging, governments have to work to change the mindset of those responsible for illegal land clearing and be firmer in penalising the culprits.