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TRANSCRIPT
Page 1
Yabanex Batista
Chief Executive Officer
April 15th, 2015
Sustaining the Caribbean Natural Capital: A Regional Finance Architecture for Conservation
Page 2
Caribbean Sustainable Finance Architecture for Conservation
The Caribbean Biodiversity Fund (CBF), a regional endowment fund, and an initial set of
8 National Conservation Trust Funds (NCTFs) being established in the region, form the
Caribbean Sustainable Finance Architecture for Conservation that will provide
sustainable resources to assist countries in achieving their goals under the CBD, the
Caribbean Challenge Initiative, national conservation priorities, and help close the
conservation finance gap.
Page 3
The Context
• Environment is often overlooked and
rapidly degrading.
• Economies highly dependent on natural
resources base.
• Limited and scarce resources for
conservation priorities in the Caribbean
region.
• Limited extension of Marine Protected
Areas / Marine Managed Areas.
• Environment is low in the political
priorities scale of the region.
Page 4
Caribbean
Biodiversity
Fund (US$42.0M)
Secretariat
BTG
(Accountants)
UBS
Investment
Manager
Chantrey-
Vellacott
Auditor
Members
Board of
Directors*
BMZ/
KfW
€20.0M
Bahamas
Trust
A&B
Trust
DR
Trust Grenad
a
Trust
Jamaic
a
Trust
SLU
Trust
SKN
Trust
SVG
Trust * Majority non government
** Periodic payments made pursuant to Vertical Agreement
Members and each Trust have
Representation on Board
TNC
US$8M
GEF
US$7.95M
Partners
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Building Block 1: Government Commitment
• Commitment to the Caribbean Challenge Initiative (CCI) goals:
• “20-by-20” Goal- Effectively conserve and manage at least 20% of the
marine and coastal environment by 2020.
• Sustainable Finance Goal- have in place fully functioning financial
mechanisms that will provide reliable funding to conserve and sustainably
manage the marine and coastal resources and the environment over the
long term.
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Building Block 2: CTFs with Strong Independent Governance
• Board of Directors – majority non-governmental.
• Government engagement and dialogue.
• Asserting independence is key during the establishment phase.
Building Block 3: CBF and NCTFs Operationalization
• Appropriate capacity to initiate operations is essential for success:
• Human Resources – Staffing, staff/board trainings, effective governance and
others.
• Operational/Technical – Infrastructure, operational systems, and others.
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Building Block 4: CBF 2020 Strategic Plan
• Establishing an institutional development plan to achieve the overall objectives.
• Strengthening engagement with NCTFs, governments and regional actors.
• Opening new thematic funding windows, such as climate change.
• Incorporating new Participating Countries.
• Developing a Phase II Capitalization Fundraising Strategy and Action Plan.
• Designing a Marketing and Communications Strategy.
Building Block #5: CBF and NCTFs common Monitoring and Evaluation
System
• CBF and NCTF compatible financial resources and conservation impact monitoring
system.
• Measure impact, address areas that need improvement or to be adapted, and help
attract new donors and partners.
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Impact
• Establishment of at least 9 new
Conservation Trust Funds in the insular
Caribbean Region.
• US$2 - 4 million/year of new resources for
conservation (once it is fully established and
operational).
• Establishment of multiple national level
sustainable finance mechanisms.
• Engagement of non-traditional conservation
sectors in conservation - finance, tourism,
private sector.
• Promote regional collaboration and dialogue.
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Reflections and Lessons Learned
• Building political commitment is a lengthy process that requires technical and
policy inputs at multiple levels in government:
• Partnership between Ministries of Finance and Environment and others.
• Assisting countries with their international and national commitments promotes
political sustainability.
• Donor’s & Partner’s commitment provides countries with additional security and
confidence to achieve their goals.
• Challenging to find the right balance between government and civil society
representation in governance structures.
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Reflections and Lessons Learned
• Developing all necessary systems (accounting, other operations systems) often
takes longer than expected.
• Essential to have formal and informal advisor and other kinds of technical
support.
• Mistakes will occur along the way and it is important to recognize and address
these quickly and continue to move forward.
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Participating Countries Donors & Partners
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Yabanex Batista Chief Executive Officer
Caribbean Biodiversity Fund