Global Biodiversity Alliance expands to 125 members, eyes new financing opportunities

The Global Biodiversity Alliance (GBA), an initiative launched by President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali to advance global biodiversity conservation, has grown significantly in less than a year, expanding from 17 founding members to 125 members from around the world.

The rapid growth reflects increasing international support for efforts aimed at placing biodiversity at the centre of climate and development discussions, according to Senior Director of Climate and REDD+ in the Office of the President, Pradeepa Bholanath.

Speaking on the Starting Point podcast on Sunday, Bholanath said the alliance’s expanding membership is helping to create new opportunities for biodiversity financing and international cooperation.

“We now have all the development banks within our region as part of the membership of the Global Biodiversity Alliance, and that kind of momentum is opening a lot of new frontiers in terms of biodiversity financing,” she explained.

Among the organisations that have joined the alliance are major multilateral development institutions, including the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank, and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB). Their participation is expected to strengthen the alliance’s ability to mobilise technical expertise and financial resources for biodiversity-related initiatives.

As membership continues to grow, the alliance is now preparing to shift its attention toward one of the most pressing challenges facing conservation efforts globally—financing.

Bholanath noted that the next phase of the alliance’s work will focus heavily on developing and expanding mechanisms that can unlock greater investment in biodiversity protection and sustainable ecosystem management.

That focus will take centre stage at the alliance’s upcoming biodiversity conference, which is expected to be held during the final quarter of 2026. The event will bring together governments, development institutions, private sector representatives, indigenous leaders, and environmental organisations to explore practical solutions for financing biodiversity conservation.

President Ali is expected to announce the official date of the conference in the coming weeks.

The conference is also expected to build on the momentum generated since the alliance’s launch in July 2025, when stakeholders from across the globe came together under a shared commitment to protect biodiversity while promoting sustainable economic development.

The Global Biodiversity Alliance was established to create stronger partnerships among governments, civil society groups, indigenous peoples, local communities, private sector entities and international organisations, recognising that biodiversity conservation requires coordinated global action.

With membership now standing at 125 and growing, Guyana’s biodiversity initiative is increasingly positioning itself as a major platform for international collaboration and financing aimed at safeguarding some of the world’s most valuable natural ecosystems.

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