UK’s announcement brings total committed funds to USD 7.3 billion, reinforces momentum behind the Tropical Forest Forever Facility
NEW YORK, September 23, 2026 – Minister Katie White, from the Government of the United Kingdom, today reaffirmed its intention to invest GBP 400 billion (approximately USD 540 million) in the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) alongside Minister João Paulo Capobianco from Brazil and Minister Sigrun Aasland from Norway, the countries that co-chair the TFFF, as well as Minister Vickram Bharrat of Guyana, and Juan Carlos Jintiach, Executive Secretary of the Global Alliance of Territorial Communities, highlighting the growing international coalition supporting one of the most ambitious forest conservation financing initiatives ever proposed.
The United Kingdom’s commitment brings the total announced contributions to the sponsor tranche of the Tropical Forest Investment Fund (TFIF), the financial engine of the TFFF, to approximately USD 7.3 billion. The commitment follows earlier announcements by Norway, Germany, Brazil, Indonesia, France and Luxembourg, as well as by the Minderoo Foundation and The Nature Conservancy.
The United Kingdom has played a role in the development of the TFFF since its inception, serving on the Interim Committee established in 2023 to help shape the Facility’s design, governance framework and financial architecture. The new commitment reinforces the UK’s longstanding leadership on climate and nature finance and reflects growing confidence among governments and institutions in the Facility’s potential to transform how tropical forests are valued and protected.
The recommitment came during a ministerial event on forest finance bringing together representatives from sponsor countries, tropical forest countries, indigenous and local community leaders, the private sector, and international institutions to underscore the importance of complementing existing climate and biodiversity finance instruments and to highlight the TFFF as a critical component of the broader forest finance agenda.
Katie White, OBE MP, UK Minister for Climate Transition:
“The climate crisis is here, it’s on our doorsteps and impacting global communities, from the wildfires in Europe this summer to scientists finding that climate change had a major role in triggering the devastating floods in Nepal. Protecting forests is one of the most effective ways we can tackle climate change. Our plan to invest £400 million in the Tropical Forests Forever Facility will support countries that are preserving their forests, helping to reverse forest loss while ensuring investment returns to the UK taxpayer.”
João Paulo Capobianco, Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Brazil:
“The TFFF seeks to address one of the main gaps in the global environmental agenda: the lack of permanent, large-scale financing for forest conservation. The United Kingdom’s support strengthens this effort and demonstrates recognition of the ecosystem services and the many contributions that tropical forests provide to the planet, from climate and water cycle regulation to biodiversity conservation and the support of the livelihoods of millions of people. Protecting these forests requires innovative instruments capable of generating long-term incentives commensurate with the scale and strategic importance of this heritage for all humanity. We welcome the indication that the United Kingdom will consider the possibility of making additional investments in the mechanism in the future, signaling its interest in deepening its contribution to this globally significant agenda.”
Sigrun Aasland, Minister of Climate and Environment of Norway:
“Protecting the world’s tropical forests requires long-term solutions and long-term finance. That is why the UKs commitment to the TFFF matters. It brings us closer to creating a mechanism that can mobilize significant resources for countries that protect tropical forests. Norway will continue to work for a TFFF that is ambitious, credible and built to last. Strong environmental and social integrity, good governance and financial robustness must be at the heart of this. If we get this right, the TFFF can become a powerful tool for protecting forests.”
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About the TFFF
The Tropical Forest Forever Facility is a novel global funding mechanism that will combine sovereign and philanthropic capital with private investment to create a fund that generates annual, results-based payments to countries that successfully conserve or expand their tropical forests. It requires participating countries to allocate at least 20% of their payments to Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities, a unique design element that sets a new precedent for inclusion in nature finance.
The TFFF is also innovative in the way it allocates resources. Unlike traditional mechanisms which primarily rely on short-term grants, the TFFF will generate its own profits, to be directed toward predictable annual payments to developing countries with tropical forests that meet the TFFF’s eligibility criteria.
The core TFFF goal is to provide large-scale, predictable incentives to governments to conserve tropical forests over the long term through a transparent, results-based, large-scale financing mechanism. This significant and sustained increase in financial incentives will enable governments to implement long-term, durable conservation policies at scale.
The TFFF design was led by Brazil, in partnership with the the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Colombia, France, Germany, Ghana, Indonesia, Malaysia, Norway, United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom, as well as in consultation with the private sector, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities, the World Bank, scientists, economists, finance experts, and civil society partners.
It was formally launched by the Brazilian government at COP30 in Belém, with the political endorsement of 66 countries and the European Union, including approximately 30 tropical forest countries across Latin America, Africa, and Southeast Asia. Together, these countries account for around 90% of the world’s tropical forests. The endorsing countries are: Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Canada, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cyprus, Denmark, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Liberia, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Rwanda, San Marino, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sierra Leone, South Africa, South Sudan, Sweden, Suriname, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and Zambia.
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