CAF joins the Mangrove Breakthrough Global Mangrove Coalition

During COP28 in Dubai, CAF joined the Global Mangrove Coalition, which aims to restore half of mangroves, double their protection globally and halve their loss. This accession coincides with CAF's commitment to finance Sustainable Oceans Plans promoted by the Ocean 2030 Coalition and WRI, which will promote comprehensive measures to enhance the blue economy in Latin America and the Caribbean.

CAF's membership in the Global Mangrove Coalition will help protect and restore the region's mangroves, and identify practical steps to implement priority financial instruments and turn strategies into viable plans. Currently, CAF is working on a strategy for the conservation and restoration of the mangrove ecosystem in Latin America and the Caribbean, which involves the participation of both the public and private sectors, incorporating potential financing mechanisms.

Mangroves are vital to the biodiversity and health of the oceans and are of great importance for coastal protection, carbon sequestration, fishing and tourism.

According to UNESCO, worldwide, the extent of mangroves is approximately 150,000 square kilometers, of which around 26% are found in Latin America and the Caribbean. However, in the last five decades, between 20% and 35% of our mangroves have disappeared due to multiple impacts, such as logging for timber and firewood, the development of mariculture, the expansion of agricultural frontiers, the expansion urban and coastal development.

In parallel, CAF has become the first member of the Ocean 2030 Coalition to support the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean to sustainably manage the ocean area under their jurisdiction by supporting the implementation of sustainable ocean plans. . These plans will contribute to avoiding the degradation of marine ecosystems, combating overfishing, minimizing pollution, achieving greater resilience to climate change, improving governance and promoting the blue economy.

These efforts are integrated into the line of work that CAF announced at the Lisbon Ocean Conference in June 2022, where it announced financing of USD 1.25 billion until 2026 to enhance marine and coastal areas and the blue economy.