<img src='https://news.cgtn.com/news/2024-11-02/COP16-concludes-with-three-major-agreements-1ycThecplZK/img/d96b489a1cb4458f95ffacd7ac9cd98f/d96b489a1cb4458f95ffacd7ac9cd98f.png' alt='On the evening of November 1, COP16 concluded in Cali, Colombia, reaching three major agreements. /CMG'
On the evening of November 1, the 16th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16) concluded in Cali, Colombia, reaching three major agreements.
Susana Muhamad, Colombia’s Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development and the chair of this conference, announced that the three agreements are: the creation of a subsidiary body for Indigenous peoples of Africa and local communities; recognition of people of African descent as guardians of biodiversity under the Convention; and the establishment of a work plan for communities through 2030.
However, the conference also highlighted that contributions from countries to the Global Biodiversity Fund over the past two weeks have been insufficient to meet the billions of dollars required to tackle the rapid decline of global biodiversity. Currently, the fund has received only around $400 million in donations.
According to the biennial Living Planet report released in October by the World Wildlife Fund and the Zoological Society of London, global wildlife populations have declined by an average of 73 percent over the past 50 years.
The COP16 spanned 12 days and included a total of 600 academic events, attended by 31,000 heads of state, officials, community representatives and experts.