More than 80% of countries have failed to submit plans to implement a UN treaty to halt the destruction of Earth's ecosystems, a new analysis has found.
Nearly two years ago, the world reached a once-a-decade agreement in Montreal, Canada, that included goals such as conserving 30% of land and sea for nature, reforming billions of dollars in environmentally damaging subsidies and reducing pesticide use. Countries committed to submit plans to implement the treaty Pre-biodiversity Cop16 in Cali, Colombia, starts this month – but only 25 countries have done so.
Another 170 countries failed to meet the deadline. UN The world has never met a single target set in the history of biodiversity treaties, and there was a big push to make sure this decade was different.
Quick guide
What is Cop16 and why is it important?
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What is Cop16?
From October 21 to November 1, governments will gather in Cali, Colombia, for the Summit on Biodiversity and the State of Nature. Representatives from nearly 200 countries will hold talks on how to protect the planet from mass extinctions and ecosystem degradation. UN Convention on Biological Diversity The meeting is formally known as the 16th Conference of the Parties to the Convention – abbreviated as Cop16. This will be the first time countries will meet after creating a major nature conservation agreement at the COP15 December 2022 in Montreal, Canada.
What will they negotiate?
In Montreal, countries agreed on a landmark agreement to save nature. Cop16 will be about whether they implement it. 23 Biodiversity Targets will be a major focus of progress for this decade. It includes a high-level goal of conserving 30% of Earth's natural resources by the end of the decade, restoring 30% of the planet's most degraded ecosystems, and reforming some of the economic drivers of loss. Countries will also discuss how to finance these safeguards.
What is at stake?
Nature is in crisis: Global wildlife populations have declined by an average of 73% over 50 years, according to a scientific assessment done in October 2024. The biodiversity crisis is not just about other species – humans also rely on the natural world for food, clean water and breathing. Ahead of Cop16, land recovery expert Donthosa Uganja said: 'We are on the precipice of breaking the Earth's natural limits – we're not there yet, but we're right on the edge.'
Analysis by Carbon Abstract and The Guardian shows that some of the planet's most important ecosystems are not covered by National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs).
Of the 17 megadiverse countries that account for 70% of the world's biodiversity, only five have produced NBSAPs: Australia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia and Mexico. Suriname is the only Amazon rainforest country to have submitted a plan, and none of the Congo Basin countries developed NBSAPs by the deadline. Canada, Italy, France and Japan were the only G7 countries to meet the deadline. UN Convention on Biological Diversity The UK has submitted a technical document to the conference, but is not expected to publish its plan until early 2025, citing a change of government.
Crystal Davies, global director of the Food, Land and Water Program at the World Resources Institute, said: “Nature is facing a crisis, largely because of humanity's use of land and seas … It is time for all countries to advance COP16, a major global agreement to protect and restore nature.”
Colombia, despite hosting the summit, failed to meet the deadline but said it would present its plan during the meeting. Brazil, which failed to meet the deadline, said it was drawing up a plan that would last until mid-century and was delayed because of the scale it was trying to achieve. Other countries are expected to issue NBSAPs at Cop16, but it is unclear how many will be published, the UN said.
“More NBSAPs would be better, that's clear,” said the UN. Astrid Schomaker, Head of Biodiversity said. “We expect more announcements at Cop16 – including some big ones like India, who want to have a ministerial announcement at Cop16 and give it a lot of profile.
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“By the end of this year, we hope there will be a few more. While they are late, we understand that countries need to get funding first. Mostly because they are trying to do a whole community approach. It will take time.”
Bralio Diaz, director of biodiversity conservation at the Brazilian Environment Ministry, which is responsible for the NBSAP process, said he expects his country to publish a plan by early 2025.
“We are working on a new NBSAP that extends to 2050. “Brazil is a large country with a large share of biodiversity, a large population with complex governance,” he said.
Dr V Rajagopalan, chairman of India's task force reviewing the country's National Biodiversity Plan, told Carbon Brief that the goals of the global nature treaty must be tailored to local contexts.
“Our situation is different from the West: what can be done there, cannot be done here,” he said. “For example, subsidies are a challenge for us because of our agricultural status and food security needs – similarly, pesticides. However, we set our goals very ambitiously.
