LLF secures further funding from Germany and France
One year after the launch of Legacy Landscapes Fund (LLF), the German Development Ministry (BMZ) has pledged a further EUR 100 million to the fund, with France also recently coming on board as a donor.
This latest commitment of funding brings Germany’s contribution to LLF to EUR 182.5 million and the fund’s total capital to approximately EUR 220 million. The announcement was made on 17 May at a press conference in Berlin.
Attendees heard from German development minister Svenja Schulze, who repeated Germany’s commitment to long-term conservation financing and declared her intention to present LLF at the meeting of G7 development ministers.
Schulze stated: “Through Legacy Landscapes Fund, we help to ensure lasting protection for the world’s most valuable conservation areas, because protected areas in developing countries need reliable long-term financing and administration in order to protect the natural environment and the global climate but also in order to protect people’s livelihoods on the ground.”
LLF executive director Stefanie Lang spoke of LLF’s trajectory throughout its first year and its plans to expand its portfolio in the coming months and years. Lang also emphasized the stringent social and human rights standards employed by LLF and the fund’s commitment to working with local communities to protect biodiverse landscapes.
Gilles Kleitz, director of Agence française de développement (AFD), also spoke at the event, explaining France’s decision to support LLF with EUR 15 million and describing long-term funds like LLF as a “key solution” to the biodiversity crisis.
Evious Mpofu, senior area manager of Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe, joined the event to detail the importance of secure long-term funding for national park management, pointing out that many activities need continuous support, such as mitigation of human-wildlife conflicts.
LLF was launched in 2021 and works to protect the world’s most outstanding natural places in perpetuity. LLF’s pilot phase is currently drawing to an end, with its last two pilot projects in the final stages of review. LLF’s recently held its first open call for proposals, which attracted a lot of interest. LLF is thus expected to take on more sites in late summer. More information about LLF’s work can be found here.