Climateupdated 1h ago3 min read
Archive photo · 19 October 2026CAF Reaches Nearly USD 780 Million In Blue Financing At COP17 On Biodiversity
5 Other1 Western AlternativePhoto: Mammysou17, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Cropped for layout
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CAF announced nearly $780 million in blue financing at COP17, 31% of its 2030 plan. COP17 finance talks show stalemate over new biodiversity funding sources.
COP17 Blue Finance
CAF said at COP17 on Biodiversity that it had reached nearly USD 780 million in blue financing, equal to 31% of its USD 2,500 million commitment for 2030, in less than a year and a half since its announcement. CAF said the first public balance of this commitment comprises 11 credit operations, three equity investments, and 26 non-reimbursable technical cooperation operations, with reach in 11 countries and in regional initiatives. CAF said its resources support an agenda linking the health of marine and coastal ecosystems with climate resilience and the development of communities.
CAF’s Manager of Climate Action and Positive Biodiversity Lina Mondragón said, “Protecting the ocean is an investment in the future of coastal communities.” CAF said its progress builds on a commitment announced at the United Nations Conference on Oceans held in Lisbon in 2022, when the institution said it would allocate USD 1,250 million over the next five years to preserve marine and coastal ecosystems.
Finance Stalemate in Yerevan
Climate Home News said negotiations on finance at COP17 nature talks in Yerevan, Armenia, had reached a stalemate as countries struggled to agree on where new sources of funding for biodiversity will come from. Climate Home News said an EU proposal to expand the list of potential government donors had gridlocked talks, so that emerging economies like China or Gulf states would also be able to contribute funding and have it counted towards a collective goal. Ireland’s nature minister Christopher O'Sullivan told journalists in Yerevan that EU member states “do feel very strongly about this,” and he said, “There are a lot of countries considered developing countries that obviously need to play their part,”
EU environment commissioner Jessika Roswall said the bloc’s member states will continue their financial commitments but, given a “big gap” on investment, their effort alone will not be enough. Climate Home News said a UN assessment report showed governments are off track to meet nearly all the 2030 targets in the Global Biodiversity Framework, often referred to as the 'Paris Agreement for nature'.
Mexico Pushes Protected Areas
Mexico’s government, through Semarnat and Conanp, presented advances at COP17 to strengthen financing and effective management of the Protected Natural Areas, as part of its commitment to move toward conserving 30% of land and marine areas by 2030. Semarnat Undersecretary of Biodiversity and Environmental Restoration Marina Robles García said, “Mexico has its own agenda to advance biodiversity conservation,” and she stressed the need for “sufficient, timely, and easily accessible resources.” José Feliciano González Jiménez, General Director of Institutional Strengthening and International Affairs of CONANP, said, “The commitment to protected areas entails strengthening their management and having long-term resources for their conservation.”
“‘Mexico has its own agenda to advance biodiversity conservation.”
Mexico Business News said the funding gap affects Mexico’s protected area programs, including the US$18.5 million MEx30x30 project, and it said COP17 is being held from October 19 to 30 in Yerevan, Armenia. Mexico Business News said MEx30x30 is funded with US$18.5 million from the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund, and it said the framework requires mobilizing at least US$200 billion annually for biodiversity from all sources by 2030 and reducing environmentally harmful subsidies by at least US$500 billion annually.
