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Global Fund for Coral Reefs

Protect and restore coral reefs

Initiated by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, and conceptualized during a workshop held in the Principality of Monaco in 2018, the GFCR has since become a global partnership that includes Member States (Germany, France), the United Kingdom, philanthropic organizations (the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation and the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation), United Nations agencies (the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), financial institutions (BNP Paribas, Pegasus Capital Advisors) and relevant organizations (the International Coral Reef Initiative). The fund was officially launched on September 16, 2020 with high-level contributions from HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco and others.

Administered by the United Nations Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office, the Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR) is the first United Nations trust fund that is specifically focused on Sustainable Development Goal 14 (“Life below water”) and the first global blended finance instrument devoted to coral reefs. Through innovative public–private partnerships, the GFCR leverages a sustainable financial mechanism to safeguard coral reef ecosystems and preserve the economic and social development of the communities that depend on those ecosystems. The plan is to mobilize $125 million in grants in $500 million in financial assets which, together, will unlock more than $2 billion in investments for the benefit of coral reefs.