Can the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund make a difference?

Subject: Environment

Section: International conventions

Global Biodiversity Framework Fund (GBFF):

On August 27, 2023, countries established the GBFF with a promise to resolve this long-standing money crunch.
The fund was established at the 7th Assembly of the Global Environment Facility in Vancouver, Canada.
It will help countries achieve the 23 targets set under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF).
- The framework was adopted at the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity in December 2022.

Finance for Biodiversity conservation:

The world requires at least US $200 billion a year until 2030 to fund biodiversity protection programmes, as assessed during COP15.
The GEF has a cumulative budget of $5.25 billion for 2022-26, of which 36 per cent is earmarked for biodiversity.
- The GEF Assembly has decided to earmark as much as 20 per cent of the donor funds for the indigenous communities.
In 2019, spending on biodiversity conservation was estimated to be between $124 and $143 billion per year against a total estimated need of $722 to $967 billion per year.
The world is on track to see a financing gap of $4.1-trillion for biodiversity by 2050, according to the “State of Finance for Nature”, released by the UN Environment Programme in May 2021.
The target 19 of KMGBF suggests a host of nature- based solutions such as payment for ecosystem services, green bonds and benefit-sharing mechanisms.
The target 18 of KMGBF that calls to eliminate, phase out or reform incentives including subsi-dies that are harmful for biodiversity, in a proportionate, just, fair, effective and equitable way, while substantially and progressively reducing them by at least $500 billion per year by 2030.
Governments world over provide $700 billion in subsidies for farming, which is responsible for 14 per cent of global deforestation.

Climate finance in India:

India (MoEFCC) has reduced the budget for its four centrally sponsored schemes for environmental protection by 38% between 2018 and 2024.
The schemes are the National Mission for a Green India, the Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats, Conservation of Natural Resources and Ecosystems and the National River Conservation Programme.
In December 2022, when COP15 took place, India already had 998 protected areas, amounting to around 5.28 per cent of the country’s area.

Protected areas in India:

The Union environment minister told that the country already has 27 per cent of its area under conservation, including reserve forests, national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, mangroves, Ramsar sites and eco-sensitive zones.
The country will depend on OECMs to achieve the remaining 3 percentage points to achieve the target of 30×30.
There are 106 national parks and 567 wildlife sanctuaries in India. Assam and Andaman & Nicobar accounts for 22.6% of parks. Andaman & Nicobar, Maharashtra and Karnataka accounts for 31.9% of the sanctuaries.
India has so far carried out three country-level biodiversity assessments. In October 2018, the country released the “Biodiversity Expenditure Review” (BER) report followed by “Financial Needs Assessment” (FNA) report in November 2018 and finally the Biodiversity Finance Plan (BFP) in May 2019.

Biodiversity credits, or Biocredits:

Mentioned in Target 19 of the KMGBF.
It is similar to carbon credits used to control greenhouse gas emissions.
They are not designed to offset negative impacts on biodiversity.
The UK and French governments are leading the way in creating this roadmap for a high-integrity bio-diversity credits market.

Protecting biodiversity under the Target 30×30:

Under target 3 of KMGBF, countries now have to protect at least 30 per cent of their “terrestrial and inland water areas, and of marine and coastal areas” by 2030. This is popularly called the 30×30 target.
The targets include biodiversity-rich areas under indigenous people and local communities, private lands and “other effective area- based conservation measures” or OECMs, which were first defined in 2018 as areas other than protected areas that help in-situ conservation of biodiversity.
Currently, the world has 16.05 per cent of its land and inland waters and 8.17 per cent of its oceans under protected areas and when existing OECMs are considered, the share of protected area increases to 17.23 per cent of land and inland water and 8.28 of marine areas.

Reducing Invasive Alien Species:

Target 6 of the KMGBF is on invasive alien species.
Recognising invasive alien species as a key driver of biodiversity loss, the target says the world must “prevent” and “reduce” the rate of introduction and establishment of invasive alien species by at least 50 per cent by 2030.

Climate finance: Timeline-

The world is set to see a $4.1-trillion financing gap in biodiversity conservation by 2050, as per UN Environment Programme.
1990: Global Environment Facility (GEF) launched as a pilot project with about US$1 billion for three years. The facility presented its first tranche of projects in 1991. Around 46 per cent of the funds were for biodiversity
2010: COP10 held in Japan. Aichi targets set for 2011-20.
2019: IPBES Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services shows that 1 million species threatened with extinction
2023: GBFF ratified at 7th GEF Assembly with a seed capital of $200 million. A total of $1.92 billion allocated to biodiversity under GEF’s 8th replenishment cycle

Financing for Biodiversity:

1992: The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) opened for signing at the Earth Summit and entered into force in 1993. The first Conference of the Parties (COP1) to the Convention held in Bahamas
1998: The first GEF Assembly held in New Delhi. It is announced that GEF was allocated $418 million for biodiversity projects over the previous three years
2012: COP11 held in India. Newly established Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) asked to assess the status of biodiversity
2022: Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework adopted at COP15 in Montreal. Indicated the world needs $200 billion per year to meet framework targets. Decision to form a special fund, Global Biodiversity Framework Fund taken.