Unlocking Finance for Coastal Resilience: Enabling investment in coastal ecosystems and improving livelihoods through the Fisheries Improvement Fund and Blue Catalyst Fund
This session will explore how innovative financing mechanisms can unlock capital for coastal communities, strengthening resilience while restoring coastal and marine ecosystems. The discussion will focus on practical approaches to improving access to finance for small-scale fisheries, coastal enterprises and nature-based solutions such as mangrove restoration. Speakers will highlight two financing vehicles, the Fisheries Improvement Fund and the Blue Catalyst Fund, and discuss how catalytic capital, technical support and buyer demand can be leveraged to scale impact, mobilise investment and support sustainable coastal livelihoods.
Framing
This short section provides context for the event to ensure all participants, regardless of prior knowledge, are equipped to engage with the discussion.
Enabling fishers and local seafood processors/aggregators to access finance to invest in technologies that improve outcomes on the water and across value chains remains a critical gap in blue finance. The challenge is not necessarily a lack of capital, but a lack of mechanisms to deploy it effectively. The same pattern is visible in coastal ecosystems. Mangroves store 4-10 times more carbon per hectare than terrestrial forests, yet blue carbon credits represented just 0.35% of voluntary carbon market issuance by March 2025. New financing mechanisms are needed to address this challenge, integrating catalytic capital, technical support and supply chain/buyer engagement.
