A total of 29 countries have pledged a record $5.25 billion (£4bn) of support for the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which was established to tackle the planet’s most pressing environmental problems.

The latest support increases GEF’s funding by nearly 30% and comes at a critical moment for developing countries whose ability to tackle worsening environmental challenges has been strained by fiscal pressures from the COVID-19 pandemic and rising inflation.

Biodiversity protection represents the biggest share of GEF’s eight programming period, called GEF-8, which will run from July 2022 to June 2026.

It will be vital to the achievement of the Leaders’ Pledge for Nature, which aims to reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 through safeguards of land and ocean territory.

Other priorities of the GEF-8 include addressing threats from climate change, land degradation and chemicals and waste as well as alleviating pressure on the oceans and international waterways.

Much of the funding will be delivered through a set of 11 integrated programmes that address multiple threats at once, such as environmental degradation linked to cities, food systems, plastics, water and forest management.

Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, CEO and Chairperson of the GEF said: “This successful replenishment is not only important for the programs and projects the GEF supports around the world and the global environmental benefits they yield. It is a strong signal that the international community is ready to work together on the tough challenges that require us all to be at the table, as we seek to restore the health of our planet and its people.”