In December 2020, 196 countries across the globe adopted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) at the Fifteenth Conference of the Parties to the Convention of Biological Diversity (COP-15) in Montreal, Canada. The KMGBF entails four long-term goals to be achieved by 2050 and twenty-three action-oriented global targets to be achieved by 2030. Among the targets of the KMGBF includes Target 18: “Identify by 2025, and eliminate, phase out or reform incentives, including subsidies, harmful for biodiversity, in a proportionate, just, fair, effective and equitable way, while substantially and progressively reducing them by at least 500 billion United States dollars per year by 2030, starting with the most harmful incentives, and scale up positive incentives for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity”.

Eliminating, phasing out, or reforming harmful incentives is key to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. Incentives, including subsidies, that are harmful to biodiversity are an important underlying driver of biodiversity loss. Incentives that are inconsistent or contradictory with global/national conservation goals may undermine the very efforts invested by countries and relevant stakeholders in biodiversity conservation. Alignment of relevant policies and incentives can contribute to solving policy-driven challenges through a change process that relies on the whole-of-a-society approach. In particular, reforms of subsidies and incentives that are harmful to biodiversity are crucial in the creation of an enabling policy environment at the national level – a critical element to the achievement of the goals and targets of the KMGBF. Furthermore, this needs to be guided by the elements of a just and inclusive transition in order to have an equitable and sustainable impact.

At this event, the GEF and partner organizations will bring together policymakers and multiple stakeholders to provide insights on how Parties can progress in the achievement of Target 18 of the KMBGF. This event will focus on the political economy aspects of Target 18, including the barriers and enabling conditions for a just transition. While it primarily focuses on Target 18, this session will also provide input into several other goals and targets of the KMGBF, such as Target 14’s goal to “Integrate Biodiversity in Decision-Making at Every Level”. Furthermore, the discussions during this side event will reflect upon and contribute to the outcomes of a day-long conference that the GEF is organizing on this topic during CBD COP-16.

The GEF serves as the financial mechanism for multiple Multilateral Environment Agreements. One of them is the United Nations Convention for Biological Diversity (CBD). At CBD COP-15, the GEF was requested to establish the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund (GBFF) to be dedicated exclusively to supporting the implementation of the KMGBF goals and targets. Since then, the GBFF has been established, ratified, launched, initially capitalized, and initial programming is underway. The outcomes of this event can serve as a guide to current and future GEF programming in this area, including for the GBFF, particularly in light of the upcoming GEF-9 replenishment negotiations. 

This side event aims to enhance the recognition of the crucial role of positive incentives, repurposing of harmful subsidies, and alignment of policy in generating global environmental benefits and in the reduction of the nature and climate funding gap. Moreover, it will stimulate further conversations at various levels of decision-making on the KMGBF Target 18. The discussions at this side event will contribute to an information document/white paper by the GEF Secretariat, which can serve to guide Parties in the achievement of Target 18. This side event will also lay the groundwork for an ongoing collaboration across a series of participating organizations toward the achievement of Target 18 and its outcomes will be used as a baseline to further engage on this topic with a range of stakeholders before and after COP-16.

Some potential speakers and facilitators identified for this event include the CEO of the GEF, the Executive Secretary of the CBD, and Ministers of Environment, Finance, and Trade from different countries. In addition, legislators will participate in the event as they are in a unique position to contribute to closing the nature financing gap by means of legal instruments and during the negotiations of the national budgets for the environment. Private sector representatives, as well as technical and academic experts, will also share their perspectives on phasing out and reforming environmentally harmful subsidy reforms.