France's Macron: Bezos Earth Fund pledged $1 billion to protect environment

PARIS (Reuters) - The Bezos Earth Fund - set up by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos - has pledged $1 billion by 2030 to help protect carbon reserves and biodiversity, according to a statement by the office of French President Emmanuel Macron.

Macron's office issued the statement on Monday as the French leader held a first series of talks at the COP27 summit in Egypt. Macron's office added that the presidents of Gabon and Rwanda had also expressed an interest at the COP27 summit in taking steps to protect forests and natural carbon reserves.

Bezos's philanthropic organization so far has pledged 30% of its $10-billion fund toward nature conservation, restoration and food-systems transformation. The fund is seeking a coalition with African and European countries around this year's U.N. climate summit to add heft to land restoration efforts.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Jon Boyle)