EU Statement -- UN General Assembly: Second Committee, Agenda item 18(f): Implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity and its contribution to sustainable development

Mr. Chair, 

I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries North Macedonia^*, Montenegro^*, Albania^*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina^* and Georgia, as well as Monaco align themselves with this statement.

At the outset, we would like to express our sincere appreciation to the facilitator, Ms. Aleena Majeed from Pakistan, for guiding the discussions. We also commend all delegations for their constructive engagement throughout the process and thank the Secretariat for its support.

Mr. Chair,

The EU and its Member States believe it is essential that the resolution reflects the full breadth of outcomes from all CBD COP16 sessions. We therefore welcome the inclusion in this year’s resolution of additional references to COP16 decisions. Looking ahead at COP17, we are also particularly pleased to see references to the global review of collective progress in implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), as well as the call for Parties to submit their seventh national report and to revise or update their National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs). We also value the inclusion of references to the first meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Article 8(j), the upcoming entry into force of the BBNJ Agreement, and the emphasis on enhancing synergies among the Rio Conventions and other biodiversity-related instruments.

At the same time, we regret that the resolution could not reflect another important COP16 decision, namely decision 16/16 on ecologically or biologically significant marine areas and its relevance for the implementation of the BBNJ Agreement. We also regret that the text does not elaborate further on key IPBES assessment reports. One is the “Nexus Assessment”, on the interlinkages among biodiversity, water, food and health and the underlying causes of biodiversity loss, and another is the “Transformative Change Assessment” on the determinants of transformative change needed to achieve the 2050 vision for biodiversity.

We nevertheless believe that overall, important progress has been made this year, and we look forward to continuing our constructive engagement next year within the Second Committee and at COP17 in Yerevan, Armenia. These upcoming discussions will provide an important opportunity to build on the progress achieved and to further strengthen our collective efforts towards the full and effective implementation of the Convention and the KMGBF.

Mr. Chair, 

We regret that a vote has been called on this normally consensual resolution. We believe this undermines our collective effort and the constructive spirit of striving for consensus which has been a tradition in this committee and has also guided the negotiations on this resolution this year. The EU and its Member States fully support this important resolution.

I thank you. 

*North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.