Prime Minister Boris Johnson has made a commitment to spend at least £3 billion of international climate finance on nature and biodiversity over the next five years.

Programmes supported by the funding will include the flagship Blue Planet Fund for marine conversation, projects to maintain forests and tackle the illegal timber trade and deforestation as well as initiatives to conserve habitats such as mangroves that protect communities from the impacts of climate change.

The funding will be allocated from the UK’s existing commitment of £11.6 billion for international climate finance.

It is expected to help make the shift towards sustainable food production and supply while supporting the livelihoods of the world’s poorest.

The prime minister made the announcement at the One Planet Summit – a leader-level virtual event convened by France – earlier this week.

He addressed a session on Financing for Biodiversity to call on other countries to raise their level of ambition on funding for nature and to mobilise public and private finance for sustainable solutions to climate change.

Ahead of the Summit, Mr Johnson said: “We will not achieve our goals on climate change, sustainable development or preventing pandemics if we fail to take care of the natural world that provides us with the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breathe.

“The UK is already leading the way in this area, committing to protect 30% of our land and ocean by the end of the decade and pledging at least £3 billion today to supporting nature and biodiversity. We must work together as a global community to drive the ambitious change and investment we need to protect our shared planet and the glorious, rich and diverse life within it.”