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Decision COP 14/27

CBD/COP/DEC/14/27

Process for aligning national reporting, assessment and review

The Conference of the Parties,

Emphasizing the value of improving the alignment of national reports under the Convention and its Protocols in order to reduce reporting burdens,

Also emphasizing the value of enhanced synergies among the biodiversity-related conventions and the Rio conventions, and noting the progress made thus far in this respect, including the activities of the Liaison Group of Biodiversity-related Conventions and the Joint Liaison Group of the Rio Conventions, as well as relevant initiatives such as the development of the Data and Reporting Tool under InforMEA,

Recognizing the potential of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework in facilitating the alignment of national reporting under the Convention and its Protocols,

Also recognizing that the Convention and each of the Protocols are distinct legal instruments with specific obligations on their Parties, and that the information provided in the national reporting formats depends on the focus and goals of implementation strategies adopted under each instrument at a given time,

Noting the continued need for capacity-building and financial support for developing countries, in particular the least developed countries and small island developing States, and countries with economies in transition, for future reporting cycles under the Convention and its Protocols,

Operational Parties

1. Decides to commence with synchronized reporting cycles for the Convention, the Cartagena Protocol and the Nagoya Protocol in 2023, and invites the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol and the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Nagoya Protocol to undertake the preparatory measures necessary for the realization of such synchronized reporting approaches and cycles;

Operational Parties

2. Encourages Parties to explore possible synergies at the national level, involving all relevant biodiversity-related reporting processes, in order to enhance the alignment and consistency of information and data in national reports;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

3. Requests the Executive Secretary:

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(a) To assess the cost implications of the synchronized reporting cycles for the Convention, the Cartagena Protocol and the Nagoya Protocol starting in 2023 in order to inform the Global Environment Facility in connection with the preparation for the replenishment of the Trust Fund for the 2022-2026 cycle;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(b) To continue making efforts to improve and harmonize the user interface and the design of national reporting, including the online reporting tool, under the Convention and its Protocols, and to report to the Subsidiary Body on Implementation at its third meeting on the progress made;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(c) To draw upon experiences and lessons learned from the most recent reports of Parties to the Convention and to the Cartagena and Nagoya Protocols, in particular with respect to facilitating the further alignment of reporting processes;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(d) To identify, when preparing documentation related to the post-2020 global biodiversity framework, any implications and options for aligning national reporting under the Convention and its Protocols;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(e) To identify, in consultation with related convention secretariats, the Liaison Group of Biodiversity-related Conventions and the Joint Liaison Group of the Rio Conventions and, on the basis of suggestions from the informal advisory group on synergies among the biodiversity-related conventions, concrete actions to advance synergies on reporting, inter alia, through:

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(i) Common indicators, where appropriate;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(ii) Reporting modules on shared issues;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(iii) Interoperability of information management and reporting systems;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(iv) Other options for increasing synergies in national reporting among the biodiversity-related conventions and the Rio conventions;

and assess the financial implications of such actions, and to report to the Subsidiary Body on Implementation at its third meeting;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(f) To continue to contribute to the monitoring process for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development1 and to explore synergies with the related reporting systems and tools for the Sustainable Development Goals, including with regard to methodological approaches;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(g) To contribute to the development, testing and promotion of the Data and Reporting Tool, in collaboration with the InforMEA Initiative, taking into account the experiences of Parties in preparing their sixth national reports to the Convention, with a view to facilitating the use of the Data and Reporting Tool across the biodiversity-related conventions, as appropriate;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(h) To evaluate the use by the Parties of online reporting tools for the sixth national report, the interim national report for the Nagoya Protocol and the national report for the Cartagena Protocol, to explore harmonization with the reporting systems used by related convention secretariats, and to report to the Subsidiary Body on Implementation at its third meeting;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(i) To continue providing capacity-building on the use of tools for the preparation and submission of national reports;

Operational Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(j) To provide, in collaboration with relevant partners, guidance to Parties on sources of spatio-temporal data on biodiversity to support the analyses underlying the assessments of progress in national reports.