Germany pledges €15 million to help close the nature finance gap

The Government of Germany has announced a €15 million contribution through the International Climate Initiative (IKI) to support joint work by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), and UNESCO on conserving and restoring landscapes that host more than one fifth of the world’s species, according to a press release by the United Nations Development Programme. The announcement was made on October 26, 2026, during the Bridging the Nature Finance Gap event in Yerevan, Armenia. The event took place on the margins of the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP17). It was jointly hosted by UNDP, UNESCO, UNCDF, Germany’s Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUKN), and the Government of Flanders. Organizers underscored the urgent need for sustained finance to implement the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

The landscapes targeted by the initiative face growing pressures from human activities and climate-related hazards. To address these threats, UNDP, UNESCO, and UNCDF are working together through the Nature Investment Facility (NIF), with support from the Governments of Germany and Flanders and Cartier Philanthropy for People and Nature. Established in 2023, NIF brings together grant funding and private investment to mobilize finance for the conservation and restoration of critical landscapes. Through blended finance approaches, the Facility seeks to reduce investment risks and increase the flow of capital toward nature-positive enterprises. IKI is one of the key instruments of the German Federal Government to support international climate action and biodiversity.

The €15 million contribution will support the launch of NIF’s Africa Living Landscapes programme and scale up the Facility’s initial investment in the Tiger Landscapes Investment Facility. The two programmes will mobilize investment in nature-positive enterprises operating in critical biodiversity landscapes across Africa and South-East Asia, respectively. The partnership aims to demonstrate how multilateral cooperation can translate global commitments into tangible action. Grant funding and private capital will be combined to crowd in additional resources. Local communities stewarding valuable ecosystems are positioned at the center of this approach.

“Nature is our most vital asset, yet it remains chronically underfunded. Through the International Climate Initiative, Germany is pleased to support the Nature Investment Facility in helping unlock finance for the protection of some of the world’s most important landscapes,” said Carsten Schneider, Federal Minister for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety.

UNDP Administrator Alexander De Croo noted that Germany’s contribution would act as a catalyst, unlocking additional public and private finance for nature. UNCDF Executive Secretary Pradeep Kurukulasuriya said the funding would be pivotal in launching the Africa Living Landscapes initiative and expanding models like the Tiger Landscapes Investment Facility in Asia. UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany described the contribution as an important step toward closing the nature finance gap. All partners stressed the need to match ambition with investment.

The initiative reflects a coordinated effort among governments, United Nations entities, philanthropy, and the private sector to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. Blended finance mechanisms will channel capital toward small businesses operating on the front lines of biodiversity protection. The Africa Living Landscapes programme and the Tiger Landscapes Investment Facility together form the backbone of NIF’s scaled-up operations. Germany’s pledge builds on earlier commitments from Flanders and Cartier Philanthropy for People and Nature. Partners confirmed that delivery on the ground remains the central measure of success.