November 1, 2026
The United Nations Conference on Biodiversity (COP17) concluded on Saturday, October 31, in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, where the participating governments agreed to intensify efforts to protect biodiversity globally following marathon negotiations that continued throughout the night, at a time when the necessary funding for implementation is still faltering, according to what the “Asia One” website reported.
The conference, which lasted for two weeks, took place in a tense political atmosphere, and before the launch of new climate talks in Türkiye on November 9. The conference witnessed the first global review of the global biodiversity framework that was agreed upon in Montreal four years ago, as delegates acknowledged that the progress achieved so far is insufficient, and that the world is still far from achieving most of its desired goals.
Following intense negotiations, governments adopted a decision titled “Yerevan Track,” which stipulates accelerating work in several sectors. These include reducing environmentally harmful subsidies, increasing funding allocated to developing countries, aligning national spending with biodiversity goals, and setting priorities to accelerate efforts until 2030.
Commenting on this, Anita de Horde, Executive Director of the Finance for Biodiversity Foundation, said: “At a time when multilateralism is under pressure, COP17 has shown that international cooperation is still capable of achieving results,” adding that “true success will be measured by what governments implement before COP18,” which is scheduled to be held in the Ecuadorian capital, Quito, in 2028.
It is noteworthy that the Montreal Framework includes major goals, most notably the preservation of 30% of land, inland waters, marine and coastal areas by 2030, the rehabilitation of 30% of degraded ecosystems, the reform of harmful subsidies, as well as the mobilization of $200 billion annually to finance the protection of biodiversity. The United Nations indicated that about 90% of parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity have set national goals, but less than half of the countries subject to evaluation are on track to achieve them.
For his part, Chief Conservation Officer at the World Wide Fund for Nature, Daudi Sumba, said that the review process sent a “strong signal,” but it required real financial support. The conference organizers announced that they had received funding pledges exceeding $1.8 billion provided by governments, philanthropic bodies and investors during the conference activities.
Governments agreed to accelerate the pace towards achieving the goal of reducing incentives harmful to biodiversity by at least $500 billion annually by 2030, as well as reviewing existing financing mechanisms, setting criteria for a permanent financing mechanism in the future, and expanding the base of voluntary contributors. On the other hand, the Director of Global Policy at the Fauna and Flora Organization, Catherine Wheeler, believed that the progress achieved was still slow, stressing that “we cannot continue the slowdown until 2030 without correcting the course.”
