MDBs issue common principles for nature-positive finance at COP28

• MDBs agreed on a definition and common principles for “nature-positive finance”   
• Common principles will deliver against the commitment set out in COP26 statement on “Nature, People and Planet” 
• Some MDBs are expected to start piloting the use of the principles in 2024  

Multilateral development banks (MDBs), including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), have agreed on a set of common principles for tracking nature-positive finance, which are expected to help guide the development and implementation of their respective technical frameworks and internal methodologies.  

Signatory MDBs include the EBRD, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the Caribbean Development Bank, the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Inter-American Investment Bank Group (IDB), the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and the World Bank Group.  

At COP26 in 2021, 10 MDBs signed a joint statement on Nature, People and Planet, which recognises that tackling poverty, climate change and the drivers of nature loss are inextricably linked. It also affirms their commitment to mainstream nature into their analysis, assessments, advice, investments and operations by 2025. 

Under this statement, the MDBs have now defined a set of common principles for tracking nature-positive finance that can be used by each MDB and that may be informative for other investors (including, but not limited to, capital markets and domestic public budget holders).  

As part of the work to establish these common principles, MDBs have been developing a list of eligible activities that could be used for screening. The list combines elements from various taxonomies already in use or in development, and takes into account the rapidly changing landscape of initiatives underway by relevant actors. Some MDBs are expected to start piloting the use of the common principles and taxonomy within their own tracking methodologies in 2024, while at the same time developing a more comprehensive nature-positive taxonomy.