YEREVAN, Armenia / AfricaWire.IO / – The outcome of the Leaders’ Summit in Yerevan, Armenia, was a call from United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres for swift and decisive international measures to halt environmental deterioration and the decline of biodiversity. He made this appeal on Friday, October 16, during the summit held ahead of the 17th United Nations Biodiversity Conference, known as COP17, scheduled from October 19 to 30. Guterres warned that over one million species are now at risk of extinction.
He emphasized the need for increased investment by governments in safeguarding ecosystems and called for greater involvement from the private sector and local communities in conservation initiatives. The Secretary-General pointed out that climate disruption, overgrazing, and the excessive application of fertilisers and pesticides are fueling a triple planetary crisis—comprising pollution, biodiversity loss, and climate change—that is pushing the planet toward becoming uninhabitable.
Describing Yerevan as a pivotal moment of accountability halfway to 2030, Guterres noted that nations adopted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework in 2022, aiming to conserve 30% of the world’s land and sea by the end of the decade. Nearly 90% of participating parties have established national biodiversity targets, and over half have drafted national road maps. Nevertheless, he stressed that progress remains inconsistent and far too slow.
Financial gap widens between environmental harm and conservation efforts
The Secretary-General highlighted a significant imbalance in global financial flows, noting that for every dollar allocated to protect nature, $30 are spent on activities damaging it. In 2023, $7.3 trillion was directed into industries detrimental to nature, including heavy industry, destructive agribusiness, and fossil fuels. Guterres urged governments to eliminate harmful subsidies and pointed to the UN-backed Cali Fund as a platform for companies benefiting from nature to contribute financially.
Achieving global biodiversity, climate, and land restoration goals will demand substantially higher investments. It is estimated that annual expenditure on nature-based solutions must reach $571 billion by 2030, roughly 0.5% of global gross domestic product. Currently, biodiversity financing is less than half of the $200 billion per year agreed upon under the global framework. Guterres also highlighted that debt burdens and limited budgets hinder developing countries from investing adequately in nature.
Protection goals still out of reach
Existing national commitments fall significantly short of the 30% protection target. Even if all pledges are fulfilled, only 26% of terrestrial ecosystems and 12% of marine ecosystems would be protected by 2030. Since 2022, an additional 1.3 million square kilometres of land and 6 million square kilometres of ocean have been granted formal protection. Guterres urged nations to meet the 30 by 30 objective and to shift policies from damaging to sustaining nature.
He also emphasized the importance of broader participation from young people, civil society, women, Indigenous Peoples, and local communities. The Secretary-General underlined that environmental degradation often impacts the most vulnerable groups the hardest. He welcomed the Yerevan Declaration’s pledge to integrate biodiversity into national policies, budgets, and regulations. As delegations now prepare for COP17, where progress toward the 2030 targets will be assessed, Guterres stressed that there is no time to delay.