Guterres warns biodiversity pledges fall short of 2030 protection target

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has urged governments to accelerate action to protect nature, warning that current national commitments would leave the world short of its goal to protect 30 per cent of land and sea by 2030.

Speaking at the Leaders’ Summit on Biodiversity in Yerevan on 16 October, Guterres said that even if countries meet their existing pledges, only 26 per cent of terrestrial and 12 per cent of marine ecosystems would be protected by the deadline. The 30 per cent target was agreed under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework in 2022.

Guterres said nearly 90 per cent of parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity had established national biodiversity targets, while more than half had set out road maps to deliver them. Since 2022, he said, a further 1.3 million square kilometres of land and 6 million square kilometres of ocean had come under formal protection. But he described progress as uneven and too slow.

He also pointed to financing as a major shortfall, saying an OECD report released earlier this month found biodiversity funding was less than half the $200 billion agreed under the framework. The UN chief called for governments to redirect support away from activities that harm nature and urged businesses to contribute to the Cali Fund, a mechanism intended to help finance biodiversity protection.

Guterres called for stronger government action, more investment and wider participation, including from young people, women, Indigenous Peoples and local communities. He said biodiversity loss was connected to other crises, including climate change, pollution and food insecurity, and urged leaders to act with urgency. [1]