NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

At the Our Ocean Conference, hosted by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington, D.C. today, Rare CEO Brett Jenks and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) CEO Naoko Ishii will be jointly announcing the development of the Meloy Fund for Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in Southeast Asia. The GEF, one of the largest funders of conservation worldwide, will be investing $6 million into the fund.

Naoko Ishii, GEF CEO and Chairperson said, “We cannot secure our oceans’ future without the active involvement of the private sector. Investment in coastal fisheries is both an environmental necessity and a largely untapped economic opportunity. Today, we are here to announce the creation of the $20 million Meloy Fund, a first-of-its-kind attempt to attract private impact investments in community small-scale fisheries in Indonesia and the Philippines. The GEF investment in this fund is part of our commitment to both promote sustainable fisheries worldwide, protect marine ecosystems and foster partnerships with the private sector.”

The Jeremy and Hannelore Grantham Environmental Trust is also participating in the creation of this initiative through a $2.5 million dollar investment in the fund, which will uniquely focus on driving investments in small-scale fisheries in Indonesia and the Philippines.

“Coastal fisheries are historically undervalued and underappreciated,” says Rare CEO Brett Jenks. “Despite providing half the world’s fish, the vast majority of fishing-sector employment and encompassing our most critical marine habitat, there is a yawning gap in investment in the sector, says Jenks. “The Meloy Fund aims to bridge that gap and further incentivize sustainable small-scale fishing practices.”