–President Ali calls for stronger Commonwealth partnerships to advance biodiversity conservation

PRESIDENT Dr. Irfaan Ali has called on Commonwealth countries to connect nature conservation with economic development and mobilise funding to protect biodiversity.
Speaking at the launch of the King Charles III-led Commonwealth Nature Initiative on the margins of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua and Barbuda, Dr. Ali said conservation should create opportunities for people and economies.
He praised the King’s longstanding leadership on conservation finance, biodiversity and indigenous communities, and urged Commonwealth leaders to make nature a central part of development discussions linking it to jobs, livelihoods and economic growth.
President Ali said the Global Biodiversity Alliance, which recently met in Georgetown, Guyana, had brought together more than 146 members. Its challenge, he said, was to move from commitments such as the “30 by 2030” goal to practical implementation.
“Overwhelmingly, there is a consensus that without financing at scale, we will continue to have conversations after conservations without delivering the action our planet needs.”
The alliance is working with the private sector, philanthropic organisations and scientists to develop ways to recognise the value of biodiversity and compensate countries that protect globally important ecosystems.
An investment and finance forum is planned for June next year, likely in London, to advance those mechanisms.
“How do we ensure nature biodiversity is taken in that broader development conversation, where it is linked to economy, people, jobs, and opportunities?”
Dr. Ali pointed to Guyana’s partnership with Norway and its low-carbon development strategy as an example of conservation and development working together. He said the country had mobilised more than US$500 million through partnerships and carbon credits.
He also highlighted an agreement between Guyana and the Commonwealth Secretariat to establish a Commonwealth Centre of Excellence for biodiversity science, knowledge-sharing and innovative finance. He said the Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub could extend its work with a stronger focus on nature.
“That is why we engage the private sector, philanthropy, and scientists to develop and advance new mechanisms that recognise the value of biodiversity services and compensate countries that protect ecosystems of global importance.”
Dr. Ali described the centre, the Global Biodiversity Alliance and the new Commonwealth Nature Initiative as complementary efforts and invited Commonwealth partners to join in tackling biodiversity loss.
He warned that the loss of nature threatens food security, economies and climate resilience, as well as the prospects of future generations.
Last week, King Charles III had praised Guyana’s efforts to protect its forests and urged countries to restore biodiversity.
The monarch while speaking on the sidelines of the second Global Biodiversity Alliance Conference and Financing Forum at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, said Guyana offered an important example of how forest protection and national development could be pursued together.
“It’s wonderful for me to come back after 26 years to Guyana, particularly also my role as a patron of Iwokrama, which I see is still going strong,” King Charles III said.
The King recalled his earlier involvement in supporting Guyana’s low-carbon development approach, and said he hoped its experience would be replicated elsewhere.
He called for urgent action to restore nature, including on degraded land, and highlighted agroforestry and mixed approaches to land management.
“Here in Guyana, you have the most wonderful example of really special treasure of natural species. You have managed to keep an enormous percentage of your forest. That is an incredible achievement,” the King said, adding: “I admire what is happening here in Guyana, and I look forward so much to seeing how the balance can be struck between development and conservation.”
He also reflected on the difficulty of assigning nature a monetary value, noting that its worth cannot be captured simply in financial terms.