A crucial problem has been brought to light by a new report: wealthy nations might not fulfill their 2025 pledge to give developing nations $20 billion annually in financing for biodiversity. This goal is essential for stopping and reversing the global loss of biodiversity. It was set at COP16 as part of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
According to the analysis, which was ordered by the Campaign for Nature, just two of the twenty-eight industrialized nations are making a sufficient contribution of $20 billion. While Sweden and Norway have surpassed their targets, Germany and France, at 99% and 92%, respectively, are almost there. Australia, on the other hand, pays 74% of its fair contribution. Japan, the UK, Italy, Canada, Korea, and Spain all have significant budget gaps that combined makeup 71% of the overall funding gap.
To calculate each country’s fair share, the methodology takes into account its population size, financial capacity, and historical effect on biodiversity. The deficit highlights a concerning pattern as the deadline draws near. The Campaign for Nature demands that developed nations immediately boost their financing, that a ministerial-level initiative be established to coordinate this funding, and that private resources be mobilized through incentives and regulation. These actions are required to support international efforts to conserve biodiversity and reach the $20 billion target.
In addition, the report calls on the US to expand its international nature funding even though it is not a signatory to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. The United States is essential because it has the biggest economy and has historically had a major impact on biodiversity.
Building trust between the Global North and Global South depends on fulfilling the $20 billion pledge. The majority of the world’s surviving biodiversity is found in developing nations, who also shoulder a disproportionate amount of the expenses and responsibilities associated with conservation. Their work is crucial for maintaining biodiversity around the world, and wealthy nations must continue to provide them with the funding to continue.
It is often known that conserving biodiversity has financial advantages. The World Economic Forum estimates that nature contributes $44 trillion annually, or half of the world GDP. As a result, the $20 billion given to poor nations is a modest but crucial investment. Sustaining ecological loss has dire repercussions for the world’s food and water resources, climate stability, disease prevention, and security.
According to research by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), between 1997 and 2011, the world lost $4–20 trillion a year as a result of decreased food yields, decreased fish harvests, higher flooding expenses, and the loss of potentially new sources of medicine. This emphasizes how financially necessary it is to fund the conservation of biodiversity.
The study’s primary author and ODI research fellow, Laetitia Pettinotti, highlights the wider ramifications of missing the biodiversity financing objective. She points out that it erodes international confidence and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. Above all, it truly jeopardizes global economies, livelihoods, shared wealth, and health.
The report from the Campaign for Nature should serve as a warning to wealthy nations. It emphasizes how crucial it is for them to contribute more to the financing of biodiversity. These financial obligations must be met as the globe gets closer to Colombia for the next Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16).
Developed nations are morally and financially obligated to increase their contributions. Increasing funding for biodiversity conservation is crucial for preserving the ecological balance that sustains human existence and economic stability in addition to conservation. The time to keep these promises is running out, so we must act quickly to save the biodiversity of our world for coming generations.