Yerevan, Armenia, 22 October 2026 – The SUSTAIN Pro programme brought lessons from its work in Mozambique’s Beira growth corridor to the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CBD COP 17) to the Convention on Biological Diversity held from 19 to 30 October 2026 in Yerevan, Armenia, contributing to discussions on how countries can translate biodiversity commitments into investable solutions at the landscape level.
During the event “Financing Nature in Practice: Mozambique’s Path from Biodiversity Commitments to Investable Solutions,” hosted at the IUCN Pavilion, representatives from the Government of Mozambique, IUCN and GAPI explored the connections between biodiversity policy, public planning and investment, landscape-level implementation, and access to finance.
IUCN presented experience from SUSTAIN Pro in the Vanduzi and Báruè landscapes, where the programme has been working with smallholder farmers, government institutions, research organisations, private-sector actors and financial institutions to combine sustainable agricultural production, water resource management, Nature-based Solutions (NbS), landscape governance, market development and access to finance.
A key focus of the discussion was the challenge of moving beyond successful landscape-level interventions towards models that can operate at greater scale. SUSTAIN Pro shared its emerging collaboration with GAPI to develop a financing pathway linking producer savings, guarantees and credit with investment in sustainable production and Nature-based Solutions. An initial financing package of approximately USD 180,000 combines grant funding, revolving credit, producer contributions, financial literacy support and a guarantee mechanism.
Building on this experience, GAPI also presented a proposal for a broader financing platform aimed at mobilising and channelling finance towards biodiversity and nature-positive investments. The proposal opened the discussion beyond individual project-level financing mechanisms towards the type of financial architecture that could help aggregate investment opportunities, connect different sources of capital, and support the scaling of solutions emerging from landscapes.
The discussion highlighted an important lesson from SUSTAIN Pro: scaling Nature-based Solutions requires more than demonstrating that sustainable practices work. It requires connecting viable interventions at landscape level with markets, financial institutions, and financing mechanisms, while creating the governance and enabling conditions needed to attract investment.
The COP17 dialogue therefore provided an opportunity not only to share SUSTAIN Pro results, but also to explore how experience generated through the programme could inform larger financing approaches in Mozambique.
SUSTAIN Pro: Productive landscapes for inclusive growth in Tanzania and Mozambique
SUSTAIN Pro aims to support sustainable food systems and healthy productive landscapes in Mozambique and Tanzania. The programme is being implemented in two landscapes in Tanzania; Ihemi and Kilombero, and two landscapes in Mozambique; Vanduzi and Baruè.
To find out more about SUSTAIN Pro programme and the wider SUSTAIN-Africa initiative please visit:
