Germany commits €15m to finance nature protection in African and Asian landscapes

Speakers focused on the need for sustained financing to put the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework into practice.

Germany has pledged €15 million through its International Climate Initiative (IKI) to support work by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The funding will help conserve and restore landscapes that shelter more than one fifth of the world's species and face mounting pressure from human activity and climate hazards. It will support the launch of the Nature Investment Facility's Africa Living Landscapes programme and expand its work in South-East Asia.

The announcement came at Bridging the Nature Finance Gap, an event held in Yerevan, Armenia, alongside the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP17). UNDP, UNESCO, UNCDF, Germany's Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUKN), and the Government of Flanders jointly hosted the event.

Speakers focused on the need for sustained financing to put the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework into practice. The partnership brings together governments, the United Nations, philanthropy and private investors to direct more funding toward communities and businesses working to protect nature.

Funding to connect conservation with investment

German Environment Minister Carsten Schneider said the IKI contribution would help unlock finance for important landscapes and show how biodiversity protection and investment can reinforce one another. UNDP Administrator Alexander De Croo said Germany's funding could attract additional public and private capital and turn global commitments into action on the ground, a priority as multilateral cooperation faces pressure.

UNCDF Executive Secretary Pradeep Kurukulasuriya said conservation needs to be an economically viable choice for local communities. The funding will let the Nature Investment Facility build on the Tiger Landscapes Investment Facility in Asia and launch its Africa Living Landscapes initiative, which will help small businesses on the front lines of biodiversity protection access private capital.

UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany described the German contribution as a step toward closing the nature finance gap and supporting communities that care for valuable ecosystems. He said the partnership shows how international cooperation can translate commitments into practical benefits for people, nature and future generations.

A facility for critical landscapes

Established in 2023, the Nature Investment Facility (NIF) combines grant funding with private investment to support conservation and restoration in critical landscapes. Its blended finance approach is designed to lower investment risks and bring more capital to enterprises whose work benefits nature.

UNDP, UNESCO and UNCDF work together through the facility, which receives support from the Governments of Germany and Flanders and Cartier Philanthropy for People and Nature. The new German contribution will back two programmes: Africa Living Landscapes in Africa and the Tiger Landscapes Investment Facility in South-East Asia, directing investment toward nature-positive businesses in biodiversity-rich areas.