International organizations working for the conservation of environment launched a US$2 million program for the protection of seven of the World Heritage sites, which includes the Puerto Princesa National Park in Palawan.

The project, an innovative financing program that will help protect the World Heritage sites, was launched by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), United Nations Foundation, and Conservation International to offer grants and affordable loans for local entrepreneurs in the World Heritage sites in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

In a press statement by the Conservation International, they said that the goal of the program is to promote the development of companies run by community members, while at the same time reducing poverty and conserving the biological diversity of seven World Heritage sites.

The sites include the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System (Belize), Morne Trois Pitons National Park (Dominica), Mount Kenya (Kenya), Sian Ka’an (Mexico), Puerto Princesa National Park (Philippines), Kilimanjaro National Park (Tanzania), and Dry Forests of the South-West (Madagascar).

These places were declared World Heritage sites by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for their unique natural beauty or scientific importance.

The World Heritage Local Ecological Entrepreneurship Program (WH-LEEP) is one of the few lines of credit to take a “blended capital” approach, which provides loans and grants at the same time to help small businesses to develop to a big enough size that makes them eligible to borrow from commercial banks.

The WH-LEEP is a partnership among the United Nations Foundation, United Nations Development Program /Global Environment Facility Small Grants Program (UNDP/GEFSGP) and Conservation International’s Verde Ventures investment fund. The participation of Verde Ventures in the WH-LEEP is enabled in part by funding from Daiwa Securities.