At the event, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) launched the first regional estimate of the biodiversity financing gap in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The analysis found that the annual gap between biodiversity financing needs and current flows exceeded 2% of regional GDP.

The analysis provided a macroeconomic and financial perspective, presenting biodiversity as critical natural infrastructure for economic stability. It highlighted that the financing gap stemmed not only from resource scarcity but also from broader constraints related to policy coherence, institutional design, incentive alignment, and the ability to structure viable, bankable, and scalable biodiversity investments.

The publication identified practical pathways to closing the gap, including identifying financing sources, redirecting policies to increase positive financial flows, strengthening LAC's capacity to mobilize international resources, and facilitating public debate on planning, policy prioritization, efficient spending allocation, monitoring, transparency, and compliance with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).

The event brought together high-level experts to discuss regional perspectives on harmonizing natural capital economics, public finance, and capital markets. The discussion examined realistic resource mobilization strategies and ways to strengthen state capacity to drive the transformative changes needed to protect the region's most vital strategic asset.