My journey into biodiversity finance began with a simple but powerful realization: finance can transform lives.

As a finance professional, I was inspired by a friend who had supported the development of a mini grid. When I saw the impact it had on a small town—the smiles, the joy, and the visible improvement in people’s daily lives—I thought to myself: I want to do this too.

That moment shaped the direction of my career.

I began with what I knew best: developing finance models. At first, I searched for models that could support renewable energy and mini grids, but I could not find the kind of tools I was looking for. Instead, I found courses on renewable energy finance, and that opened the door to a new field of work. Over time, that journey continued to evolve and eventually led me to biodiversity finance.

Today, as BIOFIN National Coordinator for Kenya, I see biodiversity finance as one of the most important frontiers for sustainable development.

The challenge: scaling finance for nature

One of the key challenges for Kenya in biodiversity finance is, quite simply, finance itself.

Kenya has made important progress in green finance. The country launched its first green bond for housing, the first in Africa. Later, another Kenyan entity issued a green bond for clean cooking, also a landmark achievement as the first of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa. These were important milestones. But they also reveal a larger challenge: despite a promising start, the number of green finance issuances has remained limited.

This tells us that while interest exists, much more needs to be done to scale both green and biodiversity finance in the country.

At the same time, there are reasons for optimism. The introduction of the Kenya Green Finance Taxonomy by the Central Bank of Kenya is an important step forward. It provides guidance on what qualifies as green investment and creates a foundation for financial institutions to develop products, especially loan products, that support green and nature-positive opportunities.

This is exactly the kind of enabling framework that can help move biodiversity finance from concept to action.

Why knowledge sharing matters

I strongly believe in the power of knowledge sharing. In many ways, this is at the heart of what BIOFIN is meant to do.

For biodiversity finance to grow, stakeholders need to understand what it means to invest in biodiversity, why it matters, and how these investments can be structured. That is why we are working with the private sector and banks to strengthen their capacity and deepen their understanding of nature-related finance.

A major part of this work involves helping institutions report and disclose their impacts and dependencies on nature. One of the most effective tools for this is the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) framework.

But adopting such a framework is not always straightforward. Financial institutions need to understand not only the reporting structure itself, but also the ecological concepts and terminology that underpin nature-related risks and opportunities. This is where technical support and capacity development become essential. In Kenya, we are advancing this work with the support of partners such as IKI and TNFD.

The importance of public sector partnership

Another critical part of Kenya’s biodiversity finance journey has been building a strong and constructive relationship with the Ministry of Finance, known in Kenya as the National Treasury.

This relationship is essential. Biodiversity finance solutions cannot be developed in isolation from public finance systems. Close collaboration with the Treasury signals that biodiversity is not only an environmental issue, but also an economic and development priority.

It also reflects a broader commitment by the government to support green growth and ensure that biodiversity is recognized as part of the country’s long-term economic future.

Bridging two worlds

My message is for two groups: those with strong biodiversity expertise and those with strong finance expertise.

For those rooted in biodiversity, it is important to understand that financial principles and metrics remain constant. Finance has its own language, logic, and structures, and these need to be engaged with clearly and confidently.

For those rooted in finance, biodiversity can feel more complex. It is dynamic, interconnected, and not always linear. In financial modelling, we often expect one plus one to equal two. In biodiversity, that is not always the case. Sometimes the value created is broader, deeper, and less predictable—it can feel like one plus one becomes three, four, or even five.

But that is precisely what makes biodiversity so fascinating.

It should not be seen as intimidating. Instead, it should be approached step by step. We need to break it down into manageable parts, build shared understanding, and focus on the critical elements that support the sustainability of our economies, our businesses, and our financial systems.

A growing opportunity

Biodiversity finance is still an evolving field, but it is one of the most important areas for the future of sustainable development.

In Kenya, the foundations are being laid: stronger policy guidance, growing engagement with financial institutions, deeper collaboration with the government, and increasing efforts to build knowledge across sectors.

The task ahead is to continue building the bridge between biodiversity and finance, so that nature is not treated as a peripheral issue, but as a core investment in resilience, prosperity, and long-term development.