The world has made significant progress in restoring degraded ecosystems, with 252 million hectares of land and other ecosystems under restoration across 149 countries, but efforts must accelerate sharply to meet global targets by 2030, according to a United Nations report.
The report, Nature’s Comeback – Scaling Ecosystem Restoration for People and Planet, estimates that annual funding for ecosystem restoration must increase more than fourfold, from US$64 billion to US$296 billion, by 2030 to reverse environmental degradation and support sustainable livelihoods.
Such investment could create up to 32 million additional jobs worldwide by the end of the decade, the report says. Restoration initiatives have already generated more than one million green jobs, marking the largest documented global restoration effort to date.
Published midway through the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021–2030), the report provides the first comprehensive global assessment of progress towards international commitments to restore around one billion hectares and ensure that at least 30 per cent of degraded terrestrial, freshwater, marine and coastal ecosystems are under effective restoration by 2030.
The report was jointly published by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). It was launched at a high-level event during the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP17).
“Yet, at the halfway point of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, we are still not restoring nature at the scale or speed required,” said Inger Andersen, executive director of UNEP.
“By 2030, we must turn inspiring initiatives into systemwide action – shifting to restoration economies that protect what remains and restore what has been degraded,” she said.
Asia accounts for the largest share of documented restoration activity, covering 192.2 million hectares. Africa follows with 36.3 million hectares, Europe with 9.1 million hectares, North and Central America with 5.8 million hectares, South America with 5.4 million hectares, and Oceania with 3.2 million hectares.
The report cautions that these figures do not necessarily indicate differences in restoration performance, as they also reflect regional land area, the scale of activities and countries’ capacity to monitor and report progress.
Uneven progress across ecosystems
Restoration efforts have advanced furthest in terrestrial ecosystems, reaching nearly half of the global target for restoring 30 per cent of degraded land ecosystems by 2030. China has reported the largest terrestrial restoration area, at 127.4 million hectares, with substantial areas also documented in Mongolia and Kazakhstan.
Progress remains considerably slower in freshwater, marine and coastal ecosystems, which are also experiencing rapid degradation.
Only 11 million hectares of freshwater ecosystems across 62 countries and 5.7 million hectares of marine and coastal ecosystems across 46 countries have been documented as being under restoration.
However, the report notes growing momentum in wetland restoration. The share of countries reporting implemented wetland restoration or rehabilitation programmes has increased from 8 per cent in 2022 to 54 per cent.
Limited reporting on aquatic ecosystems could mean that the actual scale of restoration is greater than currently documented, it adds.
Restoration is critical to food and water security, climate resilience, biodiversity conservation, employment and human well-being. Research cited in the report indicates that restoring just 15 per cent of priority areas worldwide could capture and store carbon equivalent to 30 per cent of cumulative CO₂ emissions since the Industrial Revolution and help prevent 60 per cent of species extinctions.
Successful initiatives have contributed to the recovery of species including mountain gorillas in East Africa, jaguars in Brazil, snow leopards in Kyrgyzstan and Ganges River dolphins in India.
Five initiatives in China, Colombia, Ethiopia, Italy and the United States were recognised as UN World Restoration Flagships at the conference, highlighting efforts to restore ecosystems and improve environmental outcomes.
FAO director-general QU Dongyu said restoration must become an integral part of the sustainable management of land, water and natural resources, alongside a broader transformation of agrifood systems.
“Healthy ecosystems are vital for better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life for all, leaving no one behind,” he said.
Funding and long-term commitment
The report identifies financing as a major obstacle to achieving global restoration commitments. Annual investment must rise from US$64 billion to US$296 billion by 2030, with the largest estimated annual requirements in agroforestry at US$87 billion, restorative reforestation at US$52 billion, peatland restoration at US$44 billion and seagrass restoration at US$28 billion.
Astrid Schomaker, executive secretary of the CBD Secretariat, said governments must tackle the underlying causes of ecosystem degradation while investing in monitoring systems to ensure restoration gains endure.
“We cannot expect to fix nature with one hand while we destroy it with the other one,” she said.
The report calls for stronger political commitment, improved monitoring and a shift from isolated projects towards restoration economies that can sustain ecological recovery, livelihoods and long-term economic value.
It also stresses the importance of secure land tenure, meaningful community participation and respect for the rights, knowledge and leadership of Indigenous Peoples and other rights-holders.
Restoration efforts must continue beyond 2030 to allow ecosystems and biodiversity to recover fully and deliver lasting benefits for communities, the report says.