Guyana has taken a major step forward in global environmental leadership by signing a pioneering Letter of Intent (LOI) with Silvania, a natural capital investment platform, to develop innovative approaches for financing biodiversity. The landmark agreement, inked during the Global Biodiversity Alliance Summit in Georgetown, seeks to unlock new models for valuing ecosystems and channeling private capital into nature conservation.
This partnership signals Guyana’s commitment to expanding its internationally recognized Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), first introduced in 2009. The strategy positioned Guyana as a trailblazer in forest and climate finance, including securing performance-based payments through its historic collaboration with Norway and the issuance of REDD+ carbon credits under the ART-TREES framework. These credits have been purchased by global companies such as Apple, Hess Corporation, and major airlines.
Now under President Irfaan Ali’s LCDS 2030 framework, the country is looking beyond carbon to focus on valuing critical ecosystem services such as biodiversity and freshwater. The agreement with Silvania is designed to operationalize that broader vision.
Silvania, a $500 million global platform founded by Mercuria, specialises in nature-based investments with measurable environmental and social returns. It combines private capital, technical knowledge, and strategic partnerships across Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Europe to drive large-scale ecosystem restoration efforts.
Through the LOI, Guyana and Silvania will:
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Develop new methodologies to measure and assign value to biodiversity, drawing on frameworks like ART-TREES.
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Design and pilot financial instruments linked to biodiversity outcomes.
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Share findings and best practices with the international community via the Global Biodiversity Alliance.
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Assist other countries, particularly in the Global South, in building their own biodiversity finance systems.
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Launch a joint working group within 60 days to identify pilot projects and a roadmap for implementation.
Kemraj Parsram, Executive Director of Guyana’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), hailed the partnership as a natural evolution of the country’s climate finance leadership. “We’ve proven that forest nations can lead the way in building new economic models that reward environmental preservation. Now, with Silvania, we take that leadership further—toward valuing biodiversity and securing the financing necessary to protect it,” he said.
James Cooper, Head of Origination at Silvania, echoed the sentiment. “Guyana is setting a global benchmark in nature finance. We are proud to collaborate with the EPA to craft solutions that are inclusive, grounded in local knowledge, and designed to produce real, lasting impact for biodiversity,” he noted.
Conservation International Guyana, a long-standing environmental partner to the government, also voiced strong support for the initiative. Curtis Bernard, Vice President of the organisation, remarked, “Guyana’s biodiversity and the country’s bold actions to demonstrate a new model of development are globally important. Partnerships like this one, which are rooted in science, local knowledge, and shared ambition, are how we protect nature at scale.”
The agreement upholds key principles such as national sovereignty, transparency, environmental integrity, and the free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities. It sets the stage for Guyana to become a global model in biodiversity finance—demonstrating how nature, people, and economy can thrive together.
