UN says global pact to halt biodiversity loss in sight

Nairobi, June 22 The international community is inching closer to agreeing on a binding framework to reverse biodiversity loss, tame the climate crisis and promote sustainable development, senior UN officials said.

Speaking at the fourth meeting of the open-ended working group on the post-2020 global biodiversity framework underway in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, the UN officials on Tuesday said that growing faith in multilateralism had revived hopes of establishing a new pact for promoting the conservation of species.

Inger Andersen, the Executive Director, UN Environment Programme, said there was an urgency to adopt a transformative global framework aimed at strengthening the protection of natural habitats amid mounting threats, Xinhua news agency reported.

According to Andersen, solidarity among communities of nations was key to reversing the depletion of global biodiversity hotspots and hastening the transition to a green and resilient future.

The establishment of a post-2020 global biodiversity framework will not only be a triumph of multilateralism but will also forge a pathway for addressing the triple planetary crisis of climate change, habitat loss, and pollution, Andersen added.

More than 1,000 in-person and virtual delegates are attending the fourth meeting of the open-ended working group on the post-2020 global biodiversity framework convened by the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Nairobi from June 21-26.

Delegates, including policymakers, scholars, and campaigners, will discuss modalities of establishing a robust multilateral pact to advance nature protection in the light of climate and human-induced threats during the six-day meeting.

In addition, addressing key drivers of biodiversity loss, including land-use changes, climate change, pollution, invasive species, and unsustainable consumption, will feature at the Nairobi forum.

Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), said the meeting in Nairobi will build momentum towards a global agreement on stemming the loss of species that underpin rural livelihoods.

She added that the second part of the 15th conference of parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity(COP 15) slated for December 5 to 17 in Montreal, Canada, is expected to approve a landmark global pact to protect natural habitats.