As COP16 curtains fall in Cali, negotiators leave unfinished business in disarray

The final day of the two-week marathon of the sixteenth meeting of the Biodiversity Conference of Parties (COP16) started on a high note giving parties hope for a possible common ground ending. However, some delegates decried the manner in which the negotiations came to a closure, leaving them disappointed.

A marathon of 24-hour final negotiations sprint, discussions around the establishment of a new wider biodiversity fund, as well as other key decisions, had to be postponed and the meeting was suspended for lack of negotiators quorum.

It is reported that the majority of negotiators did not turn up in the negotiation rooms due to elapsed days of their stay in Colombia and had to rush and catch up with flights to their various countries.

Worldwide Wildlife Fund (WWF) in a press release joined other delegates in castigating negotiators saying that the eventuality risks undermining confidence in and the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF).

“Some successes, but COP16 in Cali ends in disappointment, with crucial finance agreements delayed; WWF welcomes progress at COP16, but cautions that postponing challenging decisions may hinder full Global Biodiversity Framework implementation,” read part of the release.

Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Information Officer David Ainsworth confirmed the turn of events but stated that the pending negotiations would be dealt with in due course.

“Yes, indeed the meeting has been suspended because there was no quorum, this does not mean that the meeting is over, in fact, it can’t be over because we haven’t adopted the report, just like a little bit in COP15 we will continue the meeting at a future date and location at some point, another important thing to note is that all the decisions which were adopted until the meeting was suspended are completely valid.”

Good closing news on the other hand was that in the early morning, of 2nd November,196 countries at the COP16 UN biodiversity conference in Colombia agreed to establish a new global fund dedicated to sharing the benefits derived from using digital sequence information (DSI) from genetic resources.

The decision on the ‘Cali Fund’ states that companies using digital sequence information (DSI) from genetic biodiversity resources in their products should pay a portion of their profits or revenues into the fund. While the disbursement details are still being finalized, it was agreed that 50% of the fund will be allocated to Indigenous Peoples and local communities, either directly or through governments. This is to enable the communities, including women and youth to finally share in the profits.

According to Kirsten Schuijt, Director General, WWF International: “The new ‘Cali Fund,’ although imperfect and with many details still to be ironed out, is an important step forward. It ensures that companies profiting from nature contribute fairly to biodiversity conservation and directs critical funding to the people and places that need it most.”

Adding a voice to the suspension of the COP meeting, Schuijt said that despite Colombia’s valiant efforts and the tireless work of many negotiators to find consensus and build bridges between countries, the outcome jeopardizes the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and that nobody should be okay with the decision – because it will impact on all parties.

He further reminded parties that delivering the mission to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030 was never going to be easy, but the abrupt meeting suspension is veering dangerously off track.

Negotiations around the establishment of a wider new biodiversity fund for developing countries also got suspended.

Negotiations about monitoring progress progressed throughout the past two weeks, focussing on filling gaps in the monitoring framework and on the modalities for a global review process (“stocktake”) in 2026 and 2030, which would help to hold countries accountable for implementing the KMGBF also became a causality as it could not be concluded before COP was suspended.

It emerged that the developed countries have delayed their commitments to provide US$20 billion annually in international biodiversity financing which has the year 2025 as the time limit. Pledges to the interim funding mechanism, the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund (GBFF), in Cali, were also meagre, with the fund currently totalling US$407 million.

Finance for Biodiversity Foundation (FfB Foundation) on the sidelines registered concerns over the delay in finalising a comprehensive Resource Mobilisation Strategy which they say is critical to secure the $200 billion needed annually by 2030 to support biodiversity efforts.

FfB Foundation emphasized that the postponement of the mobilisation Strategy leaves a gap in aligning public and private financial flows with biodiversity goals.

“A robust resource mobilisation strategy is essential not only for increasing investments in nature but also for pushing for policies on screening financial flows that harm nature, a regulatory alignment for improved disclosure around private-sector impacts on biodiversity. We look forward to its eventual adoption as an important part of the global biodiversity agenda and we stand ready to continue to support governments for this agenda”, said Anita de Horde, Executive Director of FfB Foundation.

As at the time when curtains fell for COP16, only 44 revised National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) had been submitted even as 119 Parties went on record to have submitted their revised National Targets, representing approximately 63% of countries, a welcome uptick from before the COP when less than half of countries had published plans or targets.

Biodiversity experts who were attending COP16 observed that the adoption of the Article 8(j) work program and the Subsidiary Body is a momentous decision to guarantee the full and effective participation of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in the work undertaken under the Convention on Biological Diversity; and that the recognition of the Afro-descendant people embodying traditional lifestyles in conserving biodiversity is essential for the implementation of the Convention and a step forward to achieve peace for nature.

Other areas of negotiations which had notable progress included the mainstreaming of biodiversity across key sectors, with a new government-led Mainstreaming Champions Group launched with the support of 18 Parties which is expected to grow.

The adoption of an action plan on biodiversity and health, and of the procedures for describing Ecologically Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs) in the oceans were also key developments, the latter representing a significant step toward achieving the target of conserving 30% of ocean areas by 2030.

Progress was also made in integrating nature and climate efforts. With COP29 almost a week away in Baku, biodiversity champions welcome the commitment by Parties to strengthen the alignment of NBSAPs and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and to explore stronger collaboration between the climate and biodiversity conventions, as well as better tracking of funding sources to avoid double counting of nature and climate finance.

This story was produced as part of the 2024 CBD COP16 Fellowship by Internews' Earth Journalism Network