Nature4Health initiative opens second round for applications in January 2025

Nature4Health (N4H) initiative has announced the second round of Expression of Interest (EoI) at CBD COP16 Biodiversity and Health Day on 24 October in Cali, inviting low- and middle-income countries to apply in January 2025 to become a country or regional partner.

As the health of our planet is intertwined with the health of humanity, our future requires a holistic, systemic approach that helps to drive radical shifts to reshape societal relationships with nature and transformative actions to reinforce our health resilience.

The systemic approach plays a critical role in addressing health risks through upstream or primary prevention of zoonotic disease spillover and toppling barriers to strengthening cross-sectoral actions among policymakers, practitioners and Indigenous Peoples at the biodiversity and health nexus.

Focus on one-health approach

N4H is a global initiative, working to prevent zoonotic disease spillover of epidemic and/or pandemic potential and related health risks in regional, country and subnational jurisdictions by strengthening the environmental aspects of One Health. Therefore N4H promotes country-led, preventative policies and investments in nature. The overall focus of N4H is to address the environmental determinants of health and to strengthen the integration of the environment in the One Health approach and thereby help secure the health of ecosystems, animals, plants and people.

Through an initial contribution of EUR 50 million from the International Climate Initiative (IKI), N4H brings together UN agencies, intergovernmental organisations and civil society groups in the field of environment and health, namely, the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the EcoHealth Alliance (EHA). N4H has been established as a Multi-Partner Trust Fund and is administered by the UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office.

Six more countries or regions wanted

Taking a phased approach from 2022-2029, N4H will work in a total of 18 countries/regions where biodiversity is under threat and there are substantial risks of zoonotic disease spillover. In its first phase, six countries (Ecuador, Ghana, Mongolia, Rwanda, Vietnam and Zambia) have been selected in 2022 to work with N4H Partners to take a systemic approach to reducing health risks emanating from environmental degradation, climate change, land use changes, biodiversity loss, animal husbandry and wildlife trade and consumption.

N4H is currently looking for six more countries/regions who can join for the next phase. EOI application will open from 10 January to 24 March 2025.

CBD COP 16 topic page