16 April 2014, IISD news - The negotiations on the sixth  replenishment of the Global Environment Facility Trust Fund (GEF-6) concluded  with pledges totaling US$4.43 billion over four years. The funding was pledged  by 30 donor countries at the conclusion of negotiations that began in April 2013  and extended over four meetings. The funding will support projects in  more than 140 countries on issues related to, inter alia, climate  change, deforestation, land degradation, extinction of species, toxic chemicals  and waste, and threats to oceans and freshwater resources. In GEF-6, the  donors also agreed to support the Minamata Convention on Mercury,  which was opened for signature in 2013.

GEF-6 will introduce an "Integrated Approaches Pilot," which will seek to  address environmental challenges "by focusing on some of the underlying  drivers of environmental degradation through special focus on for example food  security in Africa, sustainable city development and on taking deforestation out  of global commodity supply chains." GEF-6 will also devote an  increased share of resources to lower-income recipient countries. Finally,  the GEF is developing "GEF2020," which is a strategy to enhance  the GEF's impact by increasing its focus on the underlying drivers of  environmental degradation.

Additional areas of focus for the GEF will include engagement with the  private sector, work on gender mainstreaming, collaboration with civil  society organizations, and an increased focus on results and the leverage of  other sources of funding through the encouragement of higher levels of  co-financing.

Source: http://forests-l.iisd.org/news/thirty-donor-countries-pledge-us4-43-billion-for-gef-6/