Hopes Persist During Last Leg of COP15

The funding gap has once again become a major sticking point at the UN biodiversity conference in Montreal between the Global North and developing countries like India. Meanwhile, deliberations continued on the global biodiversity framework (GBF) and other agenda items following a mid-week walk by developing countries. With renewed focus on resource mobilization, there has been some progress on various sections, while ministers and heads of international organizations are working to sort out contentious issues in the snow-blanketed host city.

Negotiations on the GBF progressed on its sections, including on responsibility and transparency, and communication, education, awareness, and uptake, as well as on target 17 on biotechnology. The contact group on digital sequence information (DSI) addressed a revised non-paper including two options: the first one establishing a process on the way forward, and the second one establishing a global benefit-sharing mechanism and a process for its operationalization.

Delegated reached agreement…