Countries have made little or no progress on about two-thirds of biodiversity targets involving businesses and financial institutions, the Convention on Biological Diversity said as COP17 talks opened in Yerevan.
Formal talks at the 17th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity began Oct. 19, with the global review on the agenda. The opening ceremony took place Oct. 18. The meeting is scheduled to continue through Oct. 30.
The review concerns the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted in 2022. It sets 23 targets intended to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030. This is the first global review of progress under the agreement.
Nearly 90% of the convention’s 196 parties have established national biodiversity targets, according to the CBD. Those plans address an average of 22 of the framework’s 23 targets, but many leave out portions of the corresponding global targets. National target-setting is widespread, while coverage remains incomplete.
The assessment also points to uneven policy choices. Governments made fewer commitments to reduce harmful subsidies than to expand incentives that benefit nature. The CBD said countries had no or insufficient progress on around two-thirds of the targets concerning businesses and financial institutions. It also identified limited action outside environment ministries as an implementation gap.
The framework’s financing target adds a private-sector dimension to the review. Target 19 calls for at least $200 billion annually by 2030 in biodiversity funding from all sources, while the CBD says private financing remains underdeveloped. The business-target findings sit alongside the broader challenge of mobilizing money for the agreement’s goals. The assessment adds to earlier coverage of COP17’s opening and the first global review.
Delegates are due to address the review and implementation measures before the conference closes Oct. 30.
