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AFD Group at the COP17 biodiversity conference

Biodiversity
When
From Monday October 19, 2026 to Friday October 30, 2026
Where
Meridian Expo and Event Centre, 1 Voskerichneri Street, Yerevan 0015, Armenia

Yerevan will host COP17 of the Convention on Biological Diversity from 19 to 30 October 2026. For the first time, countries will collectively review progress under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted in 2022. AFD Group will present its commitments and solutions for financing nature conservation in partner countries.

COP17 marks the first review of progress under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. The 196 Parties will assess progress since 2022 and the further efforts needed to halt biodiversity loss by 2030. Commitments have been made. The task now is to accelerate implementation.

Financing will be central to the negotiations. The Framework sets a target of mobilizing $200 billion a year from all sources by 2030, including $30 billion in international financing for developing countries. The Parties will also discuss the role of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Framework’s main financial mechanism, which countries in the Global South want to make more accessible.

More than half of global GDP depends on nature. For developing countries, protecting it is essential to development. This is the rationale behind AFD Group’s commitment to financing national biodiversity plans, helping integrate nature into economic policies, and encouraging other financial institutions to align their financial flows with the Global Biodiversity Framework.

In Yerevan, AFD Group will join the French negotiating team to present its results, new tools, and the projects it supports on the ground.

AFD Group at COP17

AFD Group will participate in COP17 alongside the French negotiating team. A major provider of biodiversity financing in developing countries, with a record €1.3 billion committed in 2025, the Group will reaffirm its commitment to maintaining €800 million a year in financing for nature despite budget constraints.

AFD was the first public development bank to commit to aligning its activities with the Global Biodiversity Framework from 2027. It also aims to encourage other financial institutions to follow suit. In Yerevan, the Group will present its solutions for helping partner countries implement their national biodiversity plans and strengthen its partnerships with other donors, foundations, and organizations working in the field.

AFD Group’s program

Explore AFD Group’s day-by-day program below.

  • Shared territories for productive and bio-culturally diverse landscapes

    11:30–13:00, Blue Zone, Talin, Side Event Room 1
    Speaker: Emmanuelle Matz, Nature Finance Expert, Agence Française de Développement

  • Building a Sustainable Finance Ecosystem to Address Nature Risks and Harness Opportunities in Asia-Pacific and Beyond

    13:15–14:45, Blue Zone, JUSCANZ Room
    Speaker: Emmanuelle Matz, Nature Finance Expert, Agence Française de Développement

  • Mainstreaming Biodiversity Across Financial Systems: Practical Solutions for GBF Implementation and Resource Mobilisation (IDFC)

    17:00–18:00, MDB Pavilion
    Speaker: Emmanuelle Matz, Nature Finance Expert, Agence Française de Développement

  • From data to action: empowering biodiversity-rich countries to implement the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework

    12:45–13:45, IUCN Pavilion, Room B
    Speaker: Emmanuelle Matz, Nature Finance Expert, Agence Française de Développement

  • IDFC Journey to Finance Nature: Stocktake and Perspectives Towards GBF Alignment

    18:00, Blue Zone, Finance Area, Finance for Biodiversity Foundation Booth
    Speaker: Audrey Rojkoff, Director of Climate and Nature, Agence Française de Développement

  • From Commitment to Capital: Scaling Nature-Positive Investment through the ADB-EU Partnership in the Nature Solutions Finance Hub

    16:00–17:30, ASEAN Pavilion
    Speaker: Audrey Rojkoff, Director of Climate and Nature, Agence Française de Développement

  • High-level dialogue: The Future of Nature is Economic: Building Partnerships for Nature and Economic Prosperity

    18:00–19:30, venue to be confirmed
    Speaker: Audrey Rojkoff, Director of Climate and Nature, Agence Française de Développement

  • From commitments to implementation: practical approaches to mainstreaming biodiversity and implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework

    09:00–10:00, Blue Zone, Armenian Pavilion
    Speaker: Karen Colin de Verdière, Deputy Head of the Agriculture, Rural Development, and Biodiversity Division, Agence Française de Développement

  • Ministerial dialogue: mobilizing finance for nature

    16:00–18:00, venue to be confirmed
    Speaker: Audrey Rojkoff, Director of Climate and Nature, Agence Française de Développement

  • From COP17 to IMPAC6: Connected High Seas Marine Protected Area Networks

    18:15, Komitas Room, Block 2, 3rd floor
    Speaker: Karen Colin de Verdière, Deputy Head of the Agriculture, Rural Development, and Biodiversity Division, Agence Française de Développement

Resources

Explore our thematic resources below.

 

What role does AFD Group play in international environmental negotiations?

Read

© Ron Mader / Flickr

 

Why does France’s development bank finance climate action in other countries?

Read

© Asadur Rahman / AFD