17 March 2023 The Caribbean Biodiversity Fund (CBF) and Saint Lucia National Conservation Fund (SLUNCF) signed a second Partnership Agreement in February 2023. This Agreement will continue to provide the SLUNCF with funding to continue its mission to support conservation, restoration, and effective management of Saint Lucia’s biodiversity and natural resources.

Under the new Agreement, the CBF will continue to manage the CBF Endowment Funds for Saint Lucia and make annual payments to the SLUNCF to support its mandate for another 5 years.

Under the first Partnership Agreement signed in 2016, the SLUNCF financed eight projects in sectors related to coastal resilience; research and development; coral reef restoration and creation of artificial reefs; protection of the endemic St. Lucia Iguana; climate-smart agriculture and the creation of sustainable livelihoods with CBF disbursements totaling US$ 1,076,950 Other achievements that the SlUNCF has realized are:

1. Partnership signed with a global travel offset initiative called Wayaj (www.wayaj.com) in 2021 to facilitate the implementation of a Carbon Offset Program towards support of a mangrove restoration project and a Sustainable Action Program (SAP) that directs funding to specific biodiversity protection and conservation projects in St. Lucia.
2. Agreement signed with the Inter American Foundation valued at USD 400,000 in 2021 for grant making and all its associated activities, including grants, establishment of a mentorship program, training, capacity building for the grantees and peer to peer learning exchanges with regional Conservation Trust Funds.
3. Successful negotiation that led to financial support from the Saint Lucia Hospitality and Tourism Association’s (SLHTA) Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) and MassyStores (St. Lucia) Ltd. which contribute to administrative expenses as well as grant making.
4. The SLUNCF participated in a regional CBF project piloting Reef Resilience and Risk Financing in the Greater Caribbean in 2022, implemented with lead organization the Mesoamerican Reef Fund (MAR Fund) partnering with CBF.

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The SLUNCF

Incorporated in 2016, the Saint Lucia National Conservation Fund is dedicated to the conservation, restoration, and effective management of Saint Lucia’s biodiversity and natural resources. Learn more at sluncf.org

The CBF

The Caribbean Biodiversity Fund was established in 2012 to create reliable, long-term funding for conservation and sustainable development in the Caribbean region. The CBF is now a regional umbrella environmental fund that uses a flexible structure to implement innovative solutions and consolidate resource mobilization in the Caribbean through a range of financial instruments.

Currently, the CBF has 3 programs, the Conservation Finance Program, based on an endowment fund, Climate Change Program, focused on Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) strategies, and Nature-based Economies Program with an Advancing Circular Economy focus.

The Conservation Finance Program currently provides sustainable financing to 11 Conservation Trust Funds in the following countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Learn more at caribbeanbiodiversityfund.org

The National Conservation Trust Funds (NCTFs) lead the grantmaking process, finance projects and drive programs for the protection and preservation of the marine and terrestrial ecosystems within their countries.