The Environment Fund, established in 1973 by the UN General Assembly, is the core financial fund of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). As the main source of unrestricted funds and the bedrock of UNEP's work worldwide, the Environment Fund is provided by Member States and enables strategic and effective delivery of results, while allowing for flexibility to respond to emerging environmental challenges.
The Environment Fund supports the implementation of UNEP’s strategy and its programmes, flagship scientific publications including the Global Environmental Outlook and Emissions Gap Report, foresight of emerging environmental issues, advocacy, capacity-building, science-policy platforms, convening governments such as through the UN Environment Assembly, hosting multilateral environmental agreements and more.
Since 2012, UNEP membership encompasses all 193 UN Member States. By the end of 2024, 80 Member States had contributed to UNEP, out of which 48 contributed their full share. Currently, the top 15 funding partners provide more than 90 percent of the income.
The share that each Member State is encouraged to contribute to the Environment Fund is calculated by the Voluntary Indicative Scale of Contributions (VISC). The VISC was established in 2002 by the UNEP Governing Council. Because one size does not fit all, the requested share is tailor-made for each country, taking into account criteria such as each Member State's economic and social circumstances, previous high levels of contributions, and other similar indicators.
