China has launched the Kunming Biodiversity Fund, with the signing of the new venture witnessed by Chinese environmental officials and UN agencies this week after first establishing the framework over two years ago.
The fund launched with 1.5 billion yuan ($210 million) in funding, and is aimed at supporting biodiversity conservation in developing nations, Chinese state media reported Wednesday.
Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang said the new fund is an opportunity to improve the protection of biodiversity and the importance of practical actions to provide financial, technical, and capacity support to developing countries in implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).
China first announced the plans in late 2021 during COP15 in Kunming in Yunnan province, the COP that was finalised in Montreal the following year.
Also at the signing ceremony was UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Executive Director Inger Andersen, who said the fund would be crucial in supporting developing countries in biodiversity conservation.
“China has positive lessons at home in conserving biodiversity. Therefore, we will hope to also learn from those lessons and transfer them to other countries,” she said.
She praised some of China’s work, such as the implementation of the ecological red-line policy and its conservation of wetlands, and establishment of national parks, as well as the protection of its giant panda.
Developed nations have committed to raising $20 billion towards biodiversity issues by 2025, but the GBF Fund established after the Montreal COP has so far just raised $226.8 mln, meaning China’s Kunming fund almost matches it for now.
Spain and Luxembourg have pledged recent contributions to the fund, following on from initial commitments made by Canada, Germany, Japan, and the UK.
The GBF Fund last week announced its second round of grants, which will see $70 mln be disbursed to 18 projects across Africa, Latin America, and Asia.
By Helen Clark – helen@carbon-pulse.com
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