The largest contributor to the United Nations Environment Program (Unep) has suspended funding to the agency ahead of the May 12 budget revision, sparking concerns among member states and NGOs.
The news could have important implications for the already rocky plastics deal negotiations overseen by Unep. Since 2022, countries have struggled to agree on how to deal with plastic production and usage, widely acknowledged as one of the most serious environmental problems of our time, but despite six rounds of talks, no deal is in sight.
Unep executive director Inger Andersen met with the head of the Norwegian Agency for Development and Cooperation (Norad) two weeks ago and was told that “all (funding) agreements are on hold” until a budget is decided, the people said.
Norway has been the largest overall contributor to Unep in recent years, contributing around $12m (£9m) to the fund each year over the three years to 2025. Norway is also contributing $19 million to the Planetary Fund in 2025 and a further $7.8 million in designated funds in 2025. This means that even a temporary suspension creates significant uncertainty over the future functioning of the Environment Agency, at a time when the wider United Nations is already facing severe financial pressures.
The Guardian also obtained an email Norad sent to NGOs advising them to postpone fundraising for projects to combat plastic pollution in developing countries.
The program is valued at between £4 million and £6 million a year, and Norad said the money could be used for projects to support countries in their plastics pact process. Christina Dixon, Oceans Campaign Leader at the Environmental Investigation Agency, said: “The risks to funding could not come at a worse time for negotiations…Sustained funding would strengthen Norway’s long-standing leadership towards an ambitious plastics treaty.”
Norway is co-leader with Rwanda of the Coalition for High Ambition in negotiating the Plastics Agreement. The coalition says it is working on an “ambitious” and legally binding document on “the entire lifecycle of plastics”. This is in contrast to a small number of petrostates that are widely seen as blocking moves to cap plastic production.
Last year, the process chairman abruptly resigned, throwing negotiations into chaos. This comes just months after three years of negotiations ended with little progress in previous negotiations. A new chair will be elected this year, and negotiations are expected to resume in early 2027.
Karen Lundmark, managing director of the Norwegian environmental foundation GRID Arendal, which works closely with Unep, said her group was concerned that the funding cut could “give other countries an excuse to lower their level of ambition”.
“Norway has played a clear and constructive leadership role in promoting a strong global plastics treaty for many years. If a country in such a position shows hesitancy or withdraws its support, the impact could spread far beyond its own borders,” she said.
Oil and gas is Norway’s largest sector, with oil revenues reaching £52bn in 2025 alone, but the government was criticized last week for approving plans to restart three North Sea gas fields to fill energy supply gaps caused by Middle East wars.
Floja Sjöld Schursaeter, from the Norwegian Green Party, said: “It would be a complete scandal if Norway moved to cut its support for global plastic removal efforts. Norway has long been committed to a global plastics pact, which makes sense given that Norwegian oil contributes to millions of tonnes of plastic each year.”
Norway’s reassessment of Unep funding comes amid a shift in the country’s political and economic debate around climate change and environmental spending. The country is ruled by the centre-left Labor Party, which continues to position Norway internationally as a supporter of climate change diplomacy, rainforest protection and efforts to negotiate a global plastics deal. However, the government led by Jonas Gare Store, who was elected last year, is a minority government and relies on agreements with other parties to pass budget proposals.
Asked about the postponement of plastics funding communicated to NGOs, Norad’s head of climate and nature, Per Fredrik Faro, said there were several funding agreements, with the main one already completed due to end last year, and another “in the process of evaluation… we need to decide on the scale and scope of future cooperation.” This process is expected to be completed in mid-2026.
Another stream has been postponed, but this production will resume “in the near future.” This has added to the confusion among NGOs after Norway’s International Development Minister Osmund Aukrst recently told Norway’s parliament that Norway would continue funding to fight plastic pollution in developing countries, with an “ambition” of spending 1 billion kroner (£79 million) between 2025 and 2028.
Eirik Lindebjerg, WWF Norway’s conservation director, expressed concern about the “vague” wording, adding: “If they are going to continue with this, why are they creating so much uncertainty?”
Mr Aukrst said Labor was operating in “unpredictable economic conditions” and “every kronor in the budget needs to be carefully considered”.
“We believe that Norway will continue its strong environmental leadership,” said an Unep spokesperson.
This article was modified on May 11, 2026. An earlier version stated that the “minister” of the Norwegian Agency for Development and Cooperation told parliament that Norway would continue to provide funding to fight plastic pollution. In fact, it was the Minister for International Development.
