Governments have agreed on a strategy to raise the funds needed to achieve the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) at the close of the UN Biodiversity Conference, COP16, in Rome, with experts hailing the “huge advance” toward an enabling environment for investor action on nature.
After the suspension of the initial COP16 session in Cali, Colombia, in late 2024, the session was reconvened in person in Rome, culminating in agreements on biodiversity finance, planning, monitoring, reporting and review, as well as the full set of indicators to measure global progress toward implementing the KMGBF.
The Global Biodiversity Framework was adopted by Parties at COP15 in Montreal, and is designed to halt and reverse nature loss with a series of global targets to be achieved by 2030 and beyond. However, negotiations since have revolved around how to plug the biodiversity finance gap and achieve the target of mobilising at least $200bn a year by 2030.
The session in Rome concluded with agreement on how to achieve that figure, while simultaneously working on improving existing financial instruments. It also identified a broad range of instruments, mechanisms and institutions that could be tapped to mobilise the funds needed, from public finance from national and subnational governments, to private and philanthropic resources, multilateral development banks, blended finance and other novel approaches.
“COP16 landed key decisions to strengthen implementation of the KMGBF,” commented Neville Ash, director of the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre. “Governments now have all the international building blocks in place to deliver on their commitments for biodiversity. Urgent action is now needed at the national level to convert these commitments into real progress.”
Multilateralism is dead, long live multilateralism
Ben Allen, director of sustainability issues and analysis at the Principles for Responsible Investment, welcomed the news, noting that reports on the demise of multilateralism were greatly exaggerated.
“This is a huge advance towards a truly enabling environment for investor action on nature. The KMGBF’s calls to leverage private capital towards biodiversity finance, both through impact funds but also through environmental and social safeguards, give us investors their clearest framework yet on this important topic. This agreement also sends positive signals and paves the way for a vital climate COP30 later this year.
“More than ever, investors understand that nature and climate are interlinked issues which demand their focus, enabling action on nature enables action on climate. We look forward to working with the sector to further support its activity on these areas.”
The world and its financial institutions now has a clearer financial roadmap, agreed Lorenzo Saa, chief sustainability officer at Clarity AI.
“What a relief. At a time when geopolitical disunity seems to reign, the constructive spirit of negotiations and the genuine positive energy in the room among delegates of different stripes felt like a rare win. Led by a remarkable Susana Muhamad (pictured), Colombia’s outgoing minister of environment and president of the negotiations, COP16 agreed on what she called the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework’s legs, arms, and muscles.
“While we also now have a process to push forward, including concrete steps to achieve 30×30, another key milestone was the formal launch of the ‘Cali Fund’, reinforcing commitments made in Cali. This global financial mechanism promotes fair benefit-sharing from digital sequence information on genetic resources, with voluntary industry contributions supporting biodiversity conservation.”
Saa did, however, point to several compromises made to get the deal over the line: “For example, there was no clear agreement on whether a single new fund or existing financial instruments will channel the needed money. Plus, many mechanisms – including the Cali Fund – are voluntary, raising concerns about empty promises. And the elephant in the room remains: the US is not a party to the Convention, meaning the financial firepower isn’t as strong as it could be, leaving questions about how these commitments will translate into real impact.
“The global community – its financial institutions, both public and private – must now take a lesson from ancient Rome: ‘Facta non verba’ – deeds, not words. These breakthroughs must be backed by real financial flows to ensure they have the legs to run.”
