Decision COP 15/28

The Conference of the Parties,

Recalling decisions III/11, V/5, VI/5, VIII/23 and X/34,

Acknowledging the importance of soil biodiversity in underpinning the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems and, therefore, most of the services it delivers,

Recognizing that activities to promote the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of soil biodiversity, and the ecosystem functions and services they provide, are key in the functioning of sustainable agricultural systems for food and nutrition security for all, for climate change mitigation, adaptation and co-benefits, for the transition towards more sustainable agricultural and food systems and to enhance the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals,

1. Adopts the Plan of Action (2020–2030) for the International Initiative for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Soil Biodiversity, as contained in the annex to the present decision, and considers it an instrument for supporting the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework on a voluntary basis and in accordance with national circumstances and priorities;

2. Takes note of the report entitled State of Knowledge on Soil Biodiversity - Status, Challenges and Potentialities, prepared by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in collaboration with the Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils of the Global Soil Partnership, the Global Soil Biodiversity Initiative, the European Commission and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity;

3. Encourages Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to support the implementation of, and capacity-building and development for, the Plan of Action (2020–2030) for the International Initiative for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Soil Biodiversity through, among other things, the integration of appropriate measures into national biodiversity strategies and action plans and national reports, sustainable soil management and relevant agricultural policies, plans, legislation, standards, programmes and practices, in accordance with national priorities and circumstances;

4. Urges Parties to address the direct and indirect drivers of soil biodiversity loss and land degradation;

5. Encourages Parties to integrate the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of soil biodiversity into agricultural systems, other managed ecosystems and other relevant sectors, land and soil management, development programmes and relevant policies;

6. Invites academic and research bodies, relevant organizations, networks and indigenous peoples and local communities, farmers, women and youth, to increase knowledge and promote awareness-raising activities on the importance of soil biodiversity and to promote further research in order to address gaps identified in the plan of action, including through different modalities of technology transfer, capacity-building and development, in accordance with the Convention;

7. Invites the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, including through the framework of the Global Soil Partnership, to facilitate the implementation of the plan of action, involving Parties, including their ministries of agriculture and environment at the national level, as appropriate;

8. Invites the United Nations Environment Programme, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, the Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils of the Global Soil Partnership and the Global Initiative for Soil Biodiversity to support the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework with regard to soil-related targets and actions, including their monitoring and reporting;

9. Urges Parties, in accordance with Article 20 of the Convention, and invites other Governments and organizations in a position to do so, to provide financial and technical support, as appropriate, to enable developing country Parties, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States, as well as countries with economies in transition, to promote the research, technology transfer, monitoring and assessment of soil biodiversity;

10. Invites the Global Environment Facility, other donors, funding agencies and the private sector to provide financial assistance to developing countries, in particular the least developed countries and small island developing States, as well as countries with economies in transition, including capacity-building and development activities, for national, subnational and regional projects that address the implementation of the Plan of Action (2020–2030) for the International Initiative for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Soil Biodiversity;

11. Invites Parties to provide, on a voluntary basis, information on their activities and results from the implementation of the Plan of Action, in alignment with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, as appropriate, and requests the Executive Secretary to compile the submissions and to make them available for consideration by the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice at a meeting held prior to the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties;

12. Requests the Executive Secretary to bring the present decision to the attention of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, other United Nations organizations, programmes and biodiversity-related conventions and the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021–2030).