Quadrupling current annual ecosystem restoration finance flows by 2030 to reach global restoration targets
Annual investment in restoration should reach US$296 annually by 2030 in order to successfully tackle the interlinked climate, biodiversity, and land degradation crisis, according to the latest State of Finance for Nature – Restoration Finance Report released in late 2024.
The State of Finance for Nature report series tracks global trends in public and private investment in Nature-based solutions (NbS), aiming to improve data quality and identify opportunities for governments, businesses and financiers.
The latest report focuses on finance flows to restoration Nature-based solutions that can reverse degradation across ecosystems by restoring and sustainably managing land and seascapes. It finds that global restoration goals - according to which 1 billion hectares are to be restored by 2030 - can only be reached if current annual investment in restoration more than quadruples until that same year. So far, governments provide almost three-quarters of finance for restoration, but there are opportunities for private finance to invest in NbS through biodiversity and carbon credits, regenerative agriculture and impact investing. Expansion of agroforestry and restorative reforestation are identified as key revenue generating restoration opportunity wherefore increased investment is especially needed in these NbS. Due to the ambitious restoration commitments of large Asian countries, Asia and the Middle East and Reforming Economies will require the highest investment in restoration, accounting for almost half of global investment in restoration.
The authors of the report – produced by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the Global Canopy and ELD in collaboration with Vivid Economics – urge governments, financial institutions and businesses to overcome this investment gap by placing nature at the heart of economic decision-making in the future. Governments are recommended to increase ODA share for targeting ecosystem restoration. To catalyse private finance for restoration, the report recommends, amongst others, that governments expand government regulation when private sector action is essential. The recommendations for action for the private sector encompass the adaptation of financial instruments to local contexts and well as the investment for gender and intrer-generational equality, for instance through green bonds or funds targeting women- and youth-lead businesses.