COP16 Outcomes

The Sixteenth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16) is taking place in Cali, Colombia between 21st October and 1st November 2024. Many BEI members will be participating in various dialogues and panels to foster cross-sector collaboration and innovation, and tracking what happens during the negotiations to analyse what effect these may have on future funding and policies.

COP16 holds particular significance as it marks the first Biodiversity COP since the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) during COP15 in December 2022 held in Montreal, Canada. The GBF centres around the ambitious “30x30” target, as nations committed to safeguarding 30% of land and oceans by 2030. Parties to the Convention are expected to show the alignment of their National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) with the Framework.

COP16 aims to further develop monitoring mechanisms and accelerate resource mobilisation toward GBF goals. For the development community, this translates into potential shifts in funding priorities, project financing, and investment strategies that align with Nature-based Solutions and biodiversity conservation.

COP16 is also due to finalise and operationalise the multilateral mechanism on the fair and equitable sharing of benefits from the use of digital sequence information (DSI) on genetic resources. The mechanism aims to acknowledge the sovereignty of countries over their genetic resources and the associated DSI, share benefit with indigenous knowledge holders and local communities, ensure transparency, and support capacity building.

Our panel will reflect on their experiences at COP16, distil some of their key takeaways, and discuss their hopes for the future.