In Rome, Colombia presented a fund to obtain resources and protect global biodiversity

This week, the final leg of the Biodiversity Summit (COP16) resumes in Rome, Italy, at the headquarters of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The meeting, which will run from February 25 to 27, has already scored its first victory with the launch of the Cali Fund, a mechanism agreed upon in Colombia that will seek to attract contributions from companies that sell digital data on nature's genetic resources, in order to obtain broader funding for the conservation of global biodiversity.

During the opening plenary session of the meeting, the President of COP16 and Minister of Environment of Colombia, Susana Muhamad, stressed the importance of multilateralism and shared responsibility to ensure the implementation of the commitments made in Cali.

“Cali was an extraordinary achievement and it was preceded by the Montreal meeting, where we were really able to approve and get consensus on a very, very good international public policy that really has at its base scientific knowledge. It is not only based on science, but it was also based on the participation of multiple stakeholders, including people who are on the front line of the laws of biodiversity and its effects,” Muhamad said.

The head of the environmental portfolio also stressed that the financing agenda requires political decisions that transcend institutional challenges and current fiscal restrictions. In this regard, she called on countries to commit to innovative and sustainable solutions that ensure the necessary resources to meet global biodiversity goals.

“Are we capable of building the capacities that this Convention and the Montreal Economic Framework require? Are we capable of transcending institutional structures that are old and outdated and that pose a challenge because they are outdated by the current challenges of the 21st century? Are we capable of awakening our creative capacity and the possibility of imagining that together we can do something more?” said Muhamad, inviting delegates to reflect deeply on the role of international cooperation.

The agreement reached for the operation of the Cali Fund establishes that companies must allocate 1% of their profits or 0.1% of their income to the financing fund. This contribution could add up to billions of dollars worldwide, covering all the sectors involved. The fund will be operated by the United Nations and will channel the money contributed towards the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.

The funds raised will be used to boost the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Kunming Montreal Framework, promoting the protection of biodiversity worldwide. It is estimated that at least 50% of the resources will be allocated to indigenous peoples and local communities, who play a fundamental role in the conservation of biodiversity.

“The Cali Fund is really the people’s fund, because at least 50% of the funding will support indigenous peoples and local communities. This fund rewards those communities that have been working for a long time to conserve biodiversity on behalf of all of us. It is time to give something back to these people who care for the planet,” said Onno van den Heuvel, Director of Finance for Nature at UNDP.

Companies that contribute to the fund, in accordance with the COP, will be able to demonstrate that they are complying with a fair and equitable distribution of the benefits derived from the use of this information, being exempt from future monetary contributions related to the same information during the year.

Ximena Barrera, Director of Government Relations and International Affairs at WWF Colombia, welcomed the creation of this mechanism and said that the fund will strengthen the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, while guaranteeing direct benefits for those who have protected ecosystems for centuries.

" The participation of the private sector in financing biodiversity through this fund marks a milestone and a precedent for responsible corporate contributions to nature. It is essential that its implementation and monitoring remain a priority for all Parties in order to guarantee its long-term impact. With the official opening of the Cali Fund, we are taking a crucial step to recognize and support the fundamental role of indigenous peoples and local communities as guardians of biodiversity," said Barrera.

The Cali Fund is part of the multilateral mechanism for the fair sharing of benefits from the use of data on genetic resources, established at CBD COP15 in December 2022. This mechanism has a flexible design to adapt to new scientific innovations and changing conservation needs, and its governance will be inclusive and transparent to ensure its effectiveness.

Environment and Health Journalist