Posted on February, 27 2025

Rome, ITALY (28 February 2025) – As the resumed UN biodiversity conference (COP16.2) in Rome drew to a close tonight, WWF applauds the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, as well as the COP16 Presidency, for delivering a hard-fought resolution this week on biodiversity finance.

Parties clarified the way forward for an effective biodiversity finance system, agreeing on a roadmap between now and 2030, including a decision in 2028 on how to operate the financial mechanism. The new biodiversity finance architecture will help to drive biodiversity actions well beyond 2030, supporting the long-term implementation of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity in an equitable way.

Efraim Gomez, Global Policy Director at WWF International said: “State parties have taken a step in the right direction. We commend them for reaching these multilateral gains in a challenging context of global politics. There is consensus on a way forward to midwife the financial arrangements we need to arrest biodiversity loss and restore nature.”
 
“However, this necessary step is not sufficient. Now, the hard work starts. It remains a point of concern that developed nations are not on track to honouring their commitment of raising 20 billion USD by 2025 for developing nations. Investing in nature is existential, it is a global life insurance. Through it, we can mitigate the climate crisis, make ecosystems and communities more resilient, stabilize food prices and lock away carbons that fuel extreme weather patterns and displace people. We must seize the opportunity to invest in nature.”

With the main impasse overcome on the biodiversity finance architecture, the talks also saw other decisions gavelled through, including a strategy to mobilise resources from 2025 to 2030 for implementing the Global Biodiversity Framework. Parties also requested an international dialogue between Ministers of Environment and Finance from developed and developing countries, to help accelerate resource mobilisation.

Lin Li, Senior Director for Global Policy and Advocacy at WWF International said: “WWF welcomes the comprehensive resource mobilisation strategy adopted here in Rome, which will help to accelerate biodiversity actions towards 2030. Negotiators from all countries, regularly organised in regional groups, put their differences aside to forge a common path forward. What’s left now is still an urgent need to mobilise funding from all sources – public, private, domestic and philanthropic – to ensure we reach the 200 billion USD a year committed by 2030.”

A process for the Global Review in 2026 at COP17 in Armenia was also adopted. This will be critical to assessing the progress made on implementing the Framework, and what needs to be done to course correct if countries remain off-track on their commitments. However, WWF urges Parties to provide adequate opportunities for civil society contributions to the review process. 

A major outcome lauded as a success in Rome was the establishment of the Cali Fund. The fund, agreed in Colombia at part one of the conference, seeks to mobilise crucial financial resources from companies using digitally sequenced genetic data. Though it is yet to receive contributions, the fund represents a significant win for Indigenous Peoples and local communities, who are expected to receive 50% of its funding to support local biodiversity actions. WWF expects the Cali Fund to be crucial for ensuring progress against all three objectives of the Convention, towards 2030 and beyond.

Ximena Barrera, Director of Government Relations and International Affairs at WWF Colombia, added: "The leadership of the COP16 Presidency has been instrumental throughout this complex process. This enabled the parties to have the confidence that agreement was within reach. Now, we must build on this trust and turn momentum into tangible action. Parties need to accelerate the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework. We must all work collectively to ensure that the commitments made today translate into real and positive change for nature and people."

An important decision to strengthen cooperation between the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and other international organisations was also passed, alongside outstanding indicators for the monitoring framework adopted, including a crucial indicator to measure the impact of production and consumption on nature.

On the National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) front, one country – the United Kingdom – published its national plan during the meeting. This takes the total number of Parties who have submitted NBSAPs to 46. Tomorrow represents the start of a one-year countdown for Parties to submit their implementation reports on the Global Biodiversity Framework (28 February 2026). However,150 Parties are still yet to publish an updated plan of action. 

Many will now be looking forward to the UNFCCC’s COP30 on climate change in Brazil later this year. Hosted in the Amazon rainforest – a critical carbon sink which risks reaching a critical tipping point by 2050 – the summit needs to send a strong signal that affirms the urgency of transforming energy, food, and financial systems as well as conserving and restoring nature. COP30 will be a moment to significantly advance the role of nature and nature-based solutions in climate negotiations and national action plans, as well as focusing attention on eliminating deforestation and restoring tropical forests.

[ENDS]

Notes to Editors

• Contact Emma Ackerley for interviews: news@wwfint.org / Tel: +44 (0) 7570 304793 
• Read WWF’s position paper on COP16.2 here.
• Review WWF’s latest analysis of National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) submitted from countries and regions, on WWF’s NBSAP Tracker.
• COP16.2 took place from 25-27th February in Rome at the UN FAO headquarters. More information can be found at the UN CBD website: https://www.cbd.int/