The Caribbean Biodiversity Fund (CBF) is pleased to announce the signing of its 7th Partnership Agreement! Our newest Partner NCTF is the St. Christopher and Nevis Conservation Foundation (SCNCF). With this Agreement, the CBF Conservation Finance Program will be channelling resources to the SCNCF to support biodiversity conservation actions in the country.
The SCNCF was established in 2016, and its purposes include: fostering and promoting the conservation, protection and maintenance of the biodiversity of the terrestrial and marine environment; promoting resource mobilization in support of the conservation of the environment.
While noting that the event of a signing ceremony had been thwarted by the pandemic, the Chair of the SCNCF highlighted that “This has been a rewarding experience and I am pleased that St. Kitts and Nevis now has a National Conservation Trust Fund that will work with the CBF and other partners towards improved conservation in our country.”
The CBF is an umbrella environmental fund with a flexible structure to implement innovative solutions for resource mobilization at the regional level through a range of financial instruments. Currently, the CBF manages about USD125 million through its Conservation Finance and the Climate Change: Ecosystem-based Adaptation Programs. The Conservation Finance program focuses on the conservation and effective management of biodiversity and natural resources and is mainly supported through the CBF Endowment Fund.
In congratulating the SCNCF on their achievement, Mr. Yabanex Batista, CBF’s CEO explained that the proceeds of the CBF Endowment benefit partner national funds like the SCNCF, who in turn lead grant-making programs at the sub-regional and national level. “One of the Program’s key principles,” he noted “is to create new, sustainable revenue that eventually provides a 1:1 match to the CBF resources.” This requirement incentivizes the NCTFs to establish financial mechanisms that can direct private and/or public resources to nature conservation and sustainable development. The CBF Conservation Finance Program also includes an organizational development component aimed at strengthening the network of Caribbean conservation trust funds known as the Caribbean Sustainable Finance Architecture.
