NAIROBI, May 14 (IPS) – More than 1,400 delegates attended two important conferences on protecting the planet’s continued biodiversity for the benefit of humanity. Topics of high interest include the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, synthetic biology, detection and identification of living modified organisms, and most importantly, biodiversity and health. The 26th meeting of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) opened in Nairobi, Kenya, on Monday. More than 1,400 delegates, including 600 signatory or party representatives from more than 150 countries, attended the seven-day meeting held at the headquarters of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). A large number of members from Aboriginal and other observer organizations, including women’s groups, also attended.
The Subsidiary Body will then convene a meeting of the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI), another subsidiary body of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). SBI will be held from May 20 to 29 at the same venue.
David Cooper, acting executive secretary of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, opened the meeting on Monday morning by calling on delegates to make it a success.
“A key part of ensuring the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework is monitoring progress, which is why the finalized monitoring framework includes validators for all parties to report on. I would like to pay tribute to all those working to build a comprehensive set of validators Sincere thanks. I encourage you to take advantage of what we have achieved so far and let’s make this conference a success.
IPS has exclusive coverage of the meetings, providing an in-depth look at them, and here presents a brief history of both meetings and their significance for wider global biodiversity conservation, particularly in the Global South, including global biodiversity Implementation of the GBF, a legally binding international biodiversity treaty adopted by countries in December 2022
SBSTTA: history, mandate and role in the Conference of the Parties
SBSTTA was established 30 years ago, in 1994, as a subsidiary body of the Convention on Biological Diversity during the first meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Nassau, Bahamas. Article 25 of the Convention on Biological Diversity authorizes its creation and obliges it to provide timely advice to the Conference of the Parties on the application of the Convention.
Since then, the main role of SBSTTA has been to provide assessments of scientific, technical and technical information relevant to the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. It usually meets once or twice a year to review and evaluate relevant scientific information, including reports submitted by Parties, relevant organizations and stakeholders. Its discussions cover a wide range of topics, including biodiversity loss, ecosystem services, invasive species, genetic resources and biotechnology.
The main outcome of the SBSTTA meetings is a set of recommendations to the COP, based on scientific and technical assessments conducted during the meetings. These recommendations provide guidance to Parties and other stakeholders on key issues relevant to the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
For example, SBSTTA recommended in 2007 that the Conference of the Parties on Biodiversity consider the potential impacts of synthetic biology on biodiversity and ecosystems and encouraged Parties to undertake further research, risk assessments and regulatory measures to address issues related to the Diversity releases any potential risks associated with synthetic organisms.
This recommendation was later adopted by the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, leading to the adoption of decisions on synthetic biology, including decision XIII/17, which encouraged Parties to continue their efforts to address the potential impacts of synthetic biology on biodiversity. positive and negative impacts and take steps to prevent them.
A recent example is the 2018 recommendation by SBSTTA that the Conference of the Parties should encourage Parties to mainstream biodiversity considerations into sectoral and cross-sectoral policies, plans and programmes, including those related to agriculture, fisheries, forestry, tourism, Policies, plans and programs related to energy and infrastructure.
The Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity later agreed to this recommendation, thereby adopting decisions and guidelines for mainstreaming biodiversity across sectors. One of these is decision XIV/4, which calls on Parties to do more to mainstream biodiversity into relevant sectors and encourage synergies between sustainable development goals and biodiversity conservation goals.
SBSTTA and genetically modified mosquitoes
There are a lot of topics on the SBSTTA-26 agenda. The most prominent of these are: 1) Creation of a monitoring framework for the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework; 2) Synthetic biology; 3) Detection and identification of modified living organisms; 4) Biodiversity and health.
Genetically engineered mosquitoes for malaria prevention are expected to be discussed under the Detection and Identification of Living Modified Organisms. The study of genetically engineered mosquitoes for malaria control has been an area of interest and research for many years, although there is little information in the public domain.
Scientists in many countries, including the United States and Brazil, have been exploring various genetic modification techniques to create mosquitoes that are resistant to the malaria parasite or unable to transmit the disease. One approach is to genetically modify mosquitoes to produce antibodies that neutralize the malaria parasite when it enters the mosquito’s body.
Another approach is to use “gene drive technology,” which involves modifying mosquitoes to ensure a high proportion of the modified genes are passed on to their offspring. There have been or are ongoing field trials of genetically modified mosquitoes around the world, the most notable being those conducted by Oxitec in Brazil and the Cayman Islands.
At SBSTTA, scientific and technical advisers will pay close attention to important environmental and ethical considerations related to genetically modified mosquitoes. According to the World Health Organization’s World Malaria Report 2023, the number of malaria infections is increasing globally due to climate change. However, some countries and organizations have serious reservations about releasing genetically modified mosquitoes, which they believe could have irreversibly damaging effects on local biodiversity. One of the most vocal groups opposing genetically modified/genetically modified mosquitoes is Friends of the Earth, a U.S.-based environmental advocacy group. Dana Perls, senior project manager at Friends of the Earth, said: “Substantial scientific research on genetically engineered mosquitoes is still needed to understand the potential public health and environmental threats associated with the release of this new genetically engineered insect. “
The Subsidiary Body is expected to witness lively discussions, particularly from environmental NGOs and faith-based organizations, including on the need to ensure that communities are fully informed and involved in decision-making processes, particularly in countries in the Global South.
SBI: Most important agenda item
The SBI was established under the CBD in 1996 during the third meeting of the CBD Conference of the Parties (COP). .
Like the SBSTTA, the SBI usually meets once or twice a year to conduct its work. Its discussions covered a wide range of topics relevant to the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity, including national biodiversity strategies and action plans, financial resources and mechanisms, capacity building and technology transfer.
The Nairobi SBI, chaired by India’s Chirra Achalender Reddy, has several items on its agenda. However, the most critical of these are: 1) resource mobilization and financial mechanisms; 2) review of progress in national target setting; 3) updating of national biodiversity strategies and action plans.
As IPS recently reported, only a handful of countries have so far been able to submit updated biodiversity action plans, while others are said to face multiple challenges in doing so, including a lack of capacity. In fact, Kenya, the host country for these meetings, has not yet been able to submit an updated action plan.
In her inaugural address at the opening of the Subsidiary Body on Monday, UNEP Executive Director Ingrid Andersen acknowledged that some member states reported a lack of capacity to revise and update their action plans. “Capacity-building is a serious issue and will be discussed seriously by SBSTTA and the SBI,” Anderson said.
David Ainsworth, director of communications at UNCBD, said there is a lack of capacity in multiple areas, including communications (countries don’t know how to communicate the need to work together on a biodiversity action plan to different ministries), finance (lack of funding, budget constraints) and knowledge.
“Perhaps the most critical of these is financial, and this will be discussed seriously by SBI,” Ainsworth said.
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© Inter Press Service (2024) — All rights reservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service
