ACB welcomes draft of post-2020 global biodiversity framework

The Asean Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) has welcomed the release of the first draft of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), its news release said.

ACB said the upcoming negotiations to finalize the framework at the global level are opportunities for the Asean region to make its collective voice heard.

“The CBD released the first official draft of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework after several months of negotiations, in which Asean member states (AMS) as parties have actively participated,” ACB Executive Director Theresa Mundita Lim said at the Asean Seminar on Multilateralism held online on July 13.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Brunei Darussalam, the current chairman of the 10-member regional bloc, hosted the virtual seminar.

Lim said the draft—which considered more than 2,000 comments from the science community, policy leaders, indigenous peoples and civil society—is a product of robust multilateralism across the world.

She said the framework is crucial to the Asean and the world as it will serve as the blueprint to bring about a transformation in society’s relationship with biodiversity and ensure that by 2050 the shared vision of living in harmony with nature is achieved.

“There will be tough and drawn-out discussions leading up to the framework’s finalization and adoption at the UN Biodiversity Conference in Kunming, China, later this year or next year,” Lim said.

She added, “These are opportunities for the region to harness multilateralism and let its collective voice be heard to influence the outcome of the framework in a manner that promotes the common interests of the region.”

The AMS actively participated in several meetings and discussions as part of the preparation of the first draft, including the recent Third Asean Conference on Biodiversity held virtually, where officials and representatives of the AMS shared their perspectives on the framework.

Some AMS expressed hope for an ambitious but realistic framework that can be translated into concrete actions, especially in facing difficult challenges from the pandemic recovery, highlighting the importance of integrating biodiversity into key development sectors and nature-based solutions as part of strategic planning processes.

The draft framework, which builds on the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020, comprises 21 targets and 10 milestones proposed for 2030.

Image courtesy of ACB photo