Cuba is one of the Caribbean’s most biodiverse island nations, with exceptionally high levels of endemism and ecosystems ranging from forests and wetlands to mangroves, coral reefs and seagrass beds. Around half of its plant species and more than 40% of its animal species are endemic. These ecosystems form an important part of the country’s natural capital, supporting livelihoods, food and water security, coastal protection and resilience to climate change.
Protecting this natural wealth requires sustained and diversified financing. Cuba faces the challenge of mobilizing sufficient resources for biodiversity while improving the effectiveness of existing expenditure and integrating the value of nature into economic and financial decision-making. This is particularly important for forests, coastal and marine ecosystems and sustainable agriculture, where biodiversity conservation is closely linked to climate resilience and local development.
UNDP BIOFIN has worked in Cuba since 2016, supporting the country to assess biodiversity expenditure and financing needs and develop financial solutions for national biodiversity priorities. The programme has helped strengthen environmental accounting and institutional coordination and has supported the integration of biodiversity finance into national economic and development planning.
Building on this foundation, a new phase of UNDP BIOFIN launched in 2024 is focused on implementing and scaling biodiversity finance solutions. These include Payments for Ecosystem Services for sustainable forest management, strengthening the National Environment Fund, green banking, sustainable finance for protected areas and financial incentives for agrobiodiversity. Together, these solutions aim to diversify funding sources, mobilize additional resources and better align Cuba’s financial system with biodiversity conservation and sustainable development.
1. Sustainable Finance for Protected Areas
UNDP BIOFIN supports the development of mechanisms to strengthen the financial sustainability of Cuba’s protected areas, including the use of visitor and entrance fees. The approach seeks to better capture revenues associated with tourism and ecosystem services and channel additional resources toward protected-area management, biodiversity conservation and sustainable use. The solution builds on earlier work with national partners to assess and design an appropriate protected-area fee mechanism.
2. Payment for Ecosystem Services for Forest Carbon Removal
UNDP BIOFIN and partners supported the development of Cuba’s first Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) mechanism for carbon removal through sustainable forest management. In 2024, the mechanism formally entered into force through Resolution 28/2024 of the Ministry of Agriculture.
The mechanism provides financial incentives to entities responsible for forest areas where sustainable management results in verified removal of carbon from the atmosphere. It creates an additional source of finance for sustainable forest management and biodiversity conservation and establishes an important foundation for Cuba’s participation in carbon finance. In 2025, Cuba also introduced a national regulatory framework facilitating participation in international carbon markets.
3. Strengthening the National Environment Fund
UNDP BIOFIN supports efforts to strengthen Cuba’s National Environment Fund as a vehicle for mobilizing and managing resources for biodiversity and environmental priorities. The solution seeks to improve the Fund’s governance, regulatory and operational arrangements while diversifying potential sources of finance and strengthening its capacity to attract, manage and channel resources toward conservation and sustainable development.
The approach forms part of broader efforts to strengthen the financial sustainability of natural-resource and environmental management within Cuba’s National Economic and Social Development Plan to 2030.
4. Green Banking and Environmental Finance
UNDP BIOFIN contributes to efforts to integrate environmental and biodiversity considerations into Cuba’s financial system. The solution strengthens the capacity of financial institutions to incorporate sustainability into financial decision-making and develop mechanisms that can direct finance toward biodiversity conservation, sustainable natural-resource management and other environmentally positive investments.
This work has contributed to the broader greening of Cuba’s banking system and the development of an enabling environment for environmental and climate finance. Recent progress includes tools for national banking eco-efficiency, environmental and climate finance tracking and platforms for managing environmental finance information.
5. Financial Incentives for Sustainable Agriculture and Agrobiodiversity
UNDP BIOFIN and related UNDP initiatives support a package of financial incentives designed to encourage sustainable agricultural production, land management and agrobiodiversity conservation. The approach combines financial and market-based mechanisms that reward producers for adopting environmentally sustainable practices and help mobilize resources for biodiversity-positive production.
Introducing Cuba’s First Payment for Carbon Removal Ecosystem Services
With support from UNDP BIOFIN, Cuba introduced a Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) mechanism for carbon removal through sustainable forest management, the first financial solution of its kind in the country. The mechanism creates an economic incentive for sustainable forest management while mobilizing resources for biodiversity conservation and climate action.
Integrating Biodiversity into Cuba’s Financial System
UNDP BIOFIN contributed to the development and approval of Cuba’s first specific Environmental Accounting Standard, issued by the Ministry of Finance and Prices. The standard enables institutions to identify and record expenditure and revenues associated with biodiversity conservation, sustainable use and ecosystem management, strengthening the integration of nature into public financial management.
Tracking Biodiversity Expenditure for the First Time
UNDP BIOFIN supported Cuba’s first comprehensive assessment of biodiversity expenditure. The Biodiversity Expenditure Review identified more than CUP 5.36 billion in biodiversity-related expenditure between 2010 and 2016, equivalent to an average of approximately CUP 766 million annually. This provided the country with an evidence base for understanding how resources for biodiversity were being allocated.
Identifying the Biodiversity Financing Gap
UNDP BIOFIN supported the costing of Cuba’s 2016–2020 National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, estimating financial requirements of approximately CUP 1.5 billion. The analysis identified a financing gap of approximately CUP 786 million, equivalent to 52% of estimated financing needs, providing evidence for the development of the country’s Biodiversity Finance Plan.
Strengthening Coordination between Environment and Finance Institutions
UNDP BIOFIN helped establish an institutional platform bringing together key institutions responsible for environment, finance, economic planning, banking and statistics. This strengthened coordination between environmental and financial decision-makers and created an institutional foundation for integrating biodiversity considerations into Cuba’s economic and financial planning.
Building National Capacity for Biodiversity Finance
More than 300 national stakeholders were trained through the first phase of UNDP BIOFIN, bringing together expertise in biodiversity, economics and finance. This helped strengthen national capacity to assess biodiversity financing needs, track expenditure and develop financial solutions for conservation and sustainable use.
Mainstreaming Biodiversity Finance into National Development Planning
The experience generated through UNDP BIOFIN has contributed to the broader institutionalization of environmental finance in Cuba. Financial sustainability for natural resources and the environment has been incorporated into the country's National Economic and Social Development Plan to 2030, while approaches developed through UNDP-supported initiatives are contributing to greener banking and financial mechanisms for sustainable land and ecosystem management.
Supporting Cuba’s New Biodiversity Ambition to 2030
Cuba entered a new cycle of biodiversity action with Cuba Biodiversa, its National Biodiversity Programme with targets through 2030 and a strategic vision to 2050. The renewed BIOFIN Phase II, running from 2024 to 2030, is focused on implementing biodiversity finance solutions that can help mobilize and improve the use of resources needed to achieve these national biodiversity priorities.
