Why is it in the news?

• Ahead of the annual climate change meeting scheduled in Baku, Azerbaijan, from November 11, countries have gathered in Cali, Colombia, for the UN Biodiversity Conference, which takes place every two years.

About CBD

• The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was established during the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, alongside the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
• The CBD aims to protect global biodiversity, restore natural ecosystems, and ensure equitable distribution of benefits derived from the world’s biological resources.
• This year’s meeting—the 16th Conference of Parties to the CBD, or COP16—is the first since the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework agreement was finalized at COP15 in Montreal in 2022.
• This framework sets four goals and 23 targets to be achieved collectively by 2030, including the “30 x 30” targets, which commit countries to conserve at least 30% of the world’s lands and oceans and restore 30% of degraded ecosystems by 2030.
• Historically, discussions under the CBD have been less prominent than climate change negotiations, but their significance is rising as awareness of biodiversity loss intensifies.
• The climate crisis and biodiversity loss are interconnected issues, both driven by unsustainable resource extraction, overconsumption, and human activities. Climate change exacerbates biodiversity loss, while changes in land and oceans contribute to global warming.

Momentum for 30 x 30

• A key objective of COP16 is to advance the 30 x 30 targets. Countries are expected to prepare and submit National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) to halt biodiversity loss within their jurisdictions.
• These plans are analogous to the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) required under the 2015 Paris Agreement. So far, only 32 of the 196 parties to the CBD have submitted their NBSAPs, but more submissions are anticipated during COP16.
• Another significant development is the High Seas Treaty, finalized last year, aimed at maintaining the ecological health of oceans. This treaty seeks to designate protected areas in biodiversity-rich ocean regions, allowing for regulated human activities similar to national parks on land.

Shared Genetic Resources

• The High Seas Treaty also focuses on ensuring equitable distribution of benefits from exploiting genetic resources in international waters.
• Oceans host a diverse range of life forms with potential medical, commercial, or scientific value, which aligns with discussions at COP16 on sharing benefits from common genetic resources.
• At COP10 in 2010, countries established the Nagoya Protocol, outlining principles regarding countries’ rights to bio-resources and rules for their commercial use.
• At COP16, negotiations will address the sharing of benefits derived from genetic information of plants and organisms, made possible by modern scientific advancements.
• These digital genetic sequences hold commercial value and are used to produce high-yield crops, beauty products, and medicines. COP16 aims to decide on the use of these sequences, access rights, and equitable profit-sharing mechanisms, particularly for indigenous populations.

Question of Finance

• One of the goals of the Kunming-Montreal Framework is to mobilize at least $200 billion annually by 2030 for biodiversity conservation. Developed countries are expected to provide a minimum of $20 billion annually to developing countries, increasing to $30 billion by 2030. COP16 will focus on mobilizing these financial resources.
• Countries are also expected to phase out harmful subsidies that negatively impact biodiversity, such as those encouraging overfishing, deforestation, or fossil fuel use.
• Efforts to address these incentives should reach at least $500 billion by 2030 under the Kunming-Montreal Framework.
• Additionally, COP16 will discuss establishing a biodiversity fund, new financing mechanisms, and biodiversity credits, similar to carbon credits.