Global Environment Facility Trust Fund provides fund for The Integrated Management of Wetland, Biodiversity and Ecosystems Services project.

Why in news?

• The Integrated Management of Wetland, Biodiversity and Ecosystems Services project, funded by the Global Environment Facility Trust Fund (GEFTF), has been allocated ₹31.13 crore for a period of 5 years.
• The three wetlands included in the project are Sasthamcotta Lake in Kerala, Harike Lake in Punjab, and Kabartal in Bihar.
• These three wetlands have been awarded a total budget equivalent of ₹19.02 crores from the GEFTF. The funds are to be divided equally between the three states.
• A project management unit (PMU) and National Project Steering Committee have been constituted to overlook the progress of the project.
• The PMU has conducted a technical appraisal of the plans submitted by state governments, analysing the incorporation of ecosystem services and biodiversity values, mapping the interventions with the threats.

About GEF trust Fund

• The Global Environment Facility (GEF) Trust Fund was established on the eve of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, to help tackle our planet’s most pressing environmental problems. GEF funding to support the projects is contributed by donor countries.
• GEF funds are available to developing countries and countries with economies in transition to meet the objectives of the international environmental conventions and agreements.
• The World Bank serves as the GEF Trustee, administering the GEF Trust Fund.