The Global Biodiversity Framework Fund (GBFF) of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) has approved 22 new project preparation grants across 34 countries, totaling over $87 million. This fourth round of grants prioritized support for Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Small Island Developing States (SIDS), and projects involving international financial institutions (IFIs), aiming to direct biodiversity funding to vulnerable countries while leveraging the financial capacity of IFIs.
With these new approvals, the GBFF has achieved all its portfolio-level targets, including 43 percent of funding directed to LDCs and SIDS, surpassing the 39 percent target, and 28 percent of funding routed through IFIs, exceeding the 25 percent target. Funding for Indigenous Peoples and local communities now stands at 29 percent, above the aspirational target of 20 percent.
Since the program began, the GBFF has allocated a total of $288.7 million across 62 project preparation grants benefiting 71 countries, including 43 LDCs and SIDS. Twenty-one LDCs and SIDS accessed the GBFF for the first time in this fourth round, reflecting expanded geographic inclusion. The selected projects were evaluated for their alignment with portfolio-level targets, regional balance, and potential to support national implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework under the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Several projects highlight the scale and impact of the funding. In the Philippines, the World Bank and International Finance Corporation will support the issuance of a biodiversity bond and develop enabling frameworks for further bonds, potentially leveraging $95 million in additional financing—19 times the GBFF’s investment. In Eastern Europe, six countries are updating and expanding biodiversity policies and frameworks to enhance biodiversity impact and align with European Union accession directives. Meanwhile, five Caribbean SIDS are strengthening technical and financial capacities to conserve biodiversity, including a regional network of protected areas supporting whales, dolphins, sea turtles, and over 1,000 fish species.
Following this fourth round, approximately $75 million remains in the GBFF’s second programming tranche, earmarked for proposals in the fifth selection round, which opened on October 27, 2025, and will close on December 12, 2025. The GBFF, hosted by the GEF, has received contributions from 12 governments, including Austria, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Norway, the Province of Québec, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
