Core support to GEF The Global Environment Facility (GEF) was established in October 1991 as a pilot program in the World Bank to assist in the protection of the global environment. In 1994 at the Rio Earth Summit the GEF was restructured and moved out of the World Bank syste
m to become a permanent separate institution. As part of the restructuring the GEF was entrusted to become the financial mechanism for both the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. The GEF subsequently wa
s also selected to serve as financial mechanism for two more international conventions: The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (2001) and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (2003).According to the Instrument the goal
 of the GEF is to try achieve global environmental benefits and therefore it operates as the financial mechanism for the multilateral environmental agreements. The GEF focal area strategies cover: (i) biodiversity, (ii) climate change mitigation, (iii) int
ernational waters, (iv) land degradation, and (v) chemicals including POPs and ODS. In the replenishment negotiations for the 5th replenishment period (1.7.2010-30.6.2014) it was decided to include also sustainable management of chemicals and mercury to pr
ogramming furthermore the GEF further strengthened its commitment to REDD+ financing.Finland has supported the GEF from the beginning the contribution to the fourth round was about 31 million euros and for the fifth about 57 million euros. This is the last
 installment of the fifth replenishment cycle.