Green finance and new partnerships boost African business’ commitments to nature  

Emerging opportunities in green finance and greater collaboration between different organizations are helping African businesses as they start to embed nature in their corporate strategies. 

In this second article focusing on African corporate nature strategies (read the first article here) Pooja Etwah-Ramdoss, Regional Coordinator at the UN Global Compact Network Indian Ocean, joins fellow Business for Nature partners from the Sustainable Finance Coalition and GSMA, to look at some of the ways in which businesses are embracing change.  

Due to a greater awareness of the central role that nature plays in business, financial institutions in Africa are also starting to develop ideas around green investment, explains Justin Smith, Chief Strategy Officer at the Sustainable Finance Coalition. “A few years ago, there was no such thing as sustainable finance teams in banks,” he says. 

Sustainable finance is a key part of the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), which aims to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030. “We’re really starting to see green finance being unpacked and play a critical role in the future of Africa,” continues Smith, “as new ways of funding initiatives, products and services designed to support nature and reverse biodiversity loss, become available.” 

There is real traction in a move away from relying on tourism and grant funding as the only way to protect and conserve nature in Africa, he says. A  whole range of financial solutions are now being explored by the corporate sector, often in collaboration with governments and NGOs. 

Ensuring companies understand their impacts on nature is a key element in helping them to access this new green funding, explains Etwah-Ramdoss. “More and more financial institutions, investors and fund managers have ESG risk metrics integrated within their business models, or investment plans,” she says. “For companies to be eligible for funding, they need to have the necessary plans in place themselves, with clear, structured targets and objectives. 

She notes a significant hurdle: “While there’s an awareness that nature, biodiversity and natural ecosystems are important for businesses, there are also gaps in understanding, application and how to actually start the process of implementing a nature strategy,” she explains. 

The United Nations Global Compact for the Indian Ocean, which covers the islands of Mauritius, Madagascar, Seychelles and Comoros, is working to bridge this gap.  

Nature and biodiversity loss, alongside climate change, have long been major issues for the islands of the Indian Ocean, which are particularly vulnerable to rising sea levels. Sectors such as tourism are on the frontline, says Etwah-Ramdoss. “Businesses know they need to act to preserve the environment and protect biodiversity, and they understand how these things are linked, but there is a lack of experts and a lack of technical knowledge on how to address those issues.” 

The UN Global Compact Network Indian Ocean recently held a webinar that set out the  support, tools and resources that are available to help businesses collect and analyze the data they need to take the next steps towards implementing a nature strategy, explains Etwah-Ramdoss. 

“This is where the Global Compact can play an important role, because as a multi-stakeholder platform, we can bring together the experts, businesses and the authorities to create an ecosystem that will enable change,” she says. 

“Collaborative action is critical,” agrees Smith. “No individual business is going to be able to do it on their own, so creating spaces where we can share learnings and create partnerships is very important.” 

GSMA is taking similar steps to bring organizations together, explains Alfred Osiko, director for market engagement for the climate tech and digital utilities program. “We work with mobile network operators to help them understand their markets, the challenges they face that affect nature, and how they can address them,” he says. 

Mobile network operators can affect nature in a variety of ways, from the energy consumption and cooling needs of data centers, to the impact of mobile towers on habitats and the upstream and downstream impacts related to mining and manufacturing.  

GSMA has established a Biodiversity Working Group to look at these issues, and how mobile tech companies can better engage with biodiversity. It has also published Nature Guidance for the Mobile Industry, which encourages companies to prioritize nature and integrate it into their business strategies. 

While efforts are being made to encourage businesses to share their thoughts on nature, and discuss ways in which industry can reduce its impacts, Etwah-Ramdoss believes: “It’s vital that legislators are involved as well, in order to provide the legal framework that can guide businesses… it’s the mobilization of all these organizations together that can be the driving force.” 

Commitments at a national government level, such as an updated National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, are important, says Smith, and in many instances, businesses are looking to take their lead from legislators. So a signal from the government that action on nature is critical from their perspective, can encourage businesses to take in the bigger picture, and look at things from a national rather than a corporate level, he says.  

The Global Biodiversity Framework provides a clear roadmap to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030, explains Sooto Ajayi, Africa Lead at Business for Nature. The organization has been supporting national governments as they seek to turn this vision into reality, importantly helping businesses to play the central role that is needed to ensure success. 

In South Africa, for instance, in partnership with Business for Nature, the Endangered Wildlife Trust helped to set up a National Business Advisory Group that has brought together major businesses to work with the government on ambitious nature policies, many of which are encapsulated in a new Biodiversity and Business Action Plan. 

And Ajayi adds: “For nature to really resonate with a business, it’s important that they hear about it from multiple sources; it brings a new level of credibility and can really encourage businesses to act.” 

To find out more about how to embed nature in your business strategy, companies can download the Nature Strategy Handbook and explore joining one of the It’s Now for Nature Accelerator programs. To learn more specifically about our work in Africa, contact Sooto Ajayi.