Yaoundé, 29 July 2025 — Cameroon’s Minister of Finance, Louis Paul Motaze, launched the Biodiversity Finance Initiative (UNDP BIOFIN) at a ceremony in Yaoundé. The initiative is led by UNDP with funding from the Global Environment Facility.

UNDP BIOFIN will support Cameroon in identifying how biodiversity is currently financed, assessing what more is needed and developing a national Biodiversity Finance Plan. The work aims to help the country direct resources towards its biodiversity priorities and make better use of existing finance.

At the launch, UNDP Resident Representative Mathieu Ciowela called for governments and the private sector to mobilize and align finance to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. Minister Motaze emphasized the need to move beyond policy commitments and secure lasting resources for action.

The initiative supports Cameroon’s efforts to integrate the sustainable management of biodiversity into its economic development. Its approach considers both additional investment in nature and ways to reduce or redirect spending that harms biodiversity.

The launch marked the beginning of a process requiring cooperation across government, the private sector and other partners. Its success will depend on turning the assessments and finance plan into practical action for Cameroon’s ecosystems and people.