Governments from around the world are meeting this week in Nairobi from 15 to 19 October to recommend science-based measures to support the implementation of the ambitious Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted last December.
This 25th meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA-25) will support the implementation of the Framework through its detailed discussions on the further development of the monitoring framework that was agreed in decision 15/5 based on the work of an expert group that is meeting throughout the biennium.
The meeting will also look at the mechanisms for providing robust scientific and technical inputs to global review of the progress in the implementation of the Framework and will review the programmes of work of the Convention and various guidance documents produced so far, in the context of how they support the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
“This is the first meeting of SBSTTA since the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework last December, and as such, the SBSTTA 25 in Nairobi sets the scene for the task at hand: to meet the scientific, technical and technological needs of Parties, in their efforts to move from agreement to actions towards our common vision of living in harmony with nature.” Hesiquio Benitez, Chair of SBSTTA-25
“Our work has only begun. We need to act swiftly and move from agreement to action. This twenty-fifth meeting of SBSTTA will draw on the latest and best available science to guide implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework agreed on at COP 15 and pave the way forward to ensure the robust monitoring of progress.” David Cooper, Acting Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity
Also on the agenda is the conservation and sustainable use of plants, with governments looking at the lessons learned from the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation https://www.cbd.int/gspc/implemented over the last decade and seeking to craft a set of actions on plant conservation that complements the new Framework.
The Convention’s scientific body is informed by the work of other processes such as The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Continuing this, at SBSTTA-25, governments will look at recent assessments from these bodies including:
– Thematic Assessment Report on the Sustainable Use of Wild Species of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services; in addition, the Subsidiary Body will consider sustainable wildlife management under agenda item 6;
– Thematic Assessment Report on Invasive Alien Species and their Control of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services; in addition, the Subsidiary Body will consider invasive alien species and their control under agenda item 5;
– Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, where relevant to the Convention; Building on this work, SBSTTA-25 will also look at the following three issues in detail:
Invasive Alien Species (IAS):
Governments will look at the draft advice and voluntary guidance that will support the national implementation of Framework relating to the issues of invasive alien species, in particular Target 6. Their deliberations will be complemented by the review on the findings from the IPBES assessment on invasive alien species and their control.
Sustainable Wildlife Management
SBSTTA-25 will review the information on areas beyond the wild meat sector that might require complementary guidance; identify on which areas should be prioritized for the development of complementary guidance; and guide the future work of the Secretariat, with support of the Collaborative Partnership on Sustainable Wildlife Management, in preparing draft complementary guidance.
Biodiversity and Climate Change
The important linkages between biodiversity and climate change will be reviewed by SBSTTA-25 based on views and information on biodiversity and climate change compiled from the submissions by Parties, other Governments and international organizations, as well as relevant scientific and technical information on biodiversity and climate change, including work done by the IPCC.
The recommendations made by SBSTTA-25 at this Nairobi meeting will be sent for agreement at COP 16, scheduled to be held in 2024.
Resumed Session of COP 15 and meetings of the Protocols to the Convention
Following SBSTTA-25, on 19 and 20 October, the resumed second part of the fifteenth meeting of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 15) and the COP-MOPs of the Cartagena and Nagoya Protocols will be held. At this session, governments are expected to conclude election processes for the chairs of the subsidiary bodies and the bureaus, and formally adopt the final report of the meeting.
