Unlocking Transformative Change: Turning global commitments into action to reform subsidies harmful to biodiversity

Governments spend at least USD 2 trillion each year on subsidies that harm nature, undermine biodiversity, weaken climate resilience, and strain national budgets. Reforming even a fraction of these subsidies is one of the most cost-effective ways for countries to achieve climate and biodiversity goals while improving economic outcomes.

Target 18 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) seeks to reduce harmful incentives, including subsidies, by at least USD 500 billion per year and scale up positive incentives for biodiversity. But past failures show that countries need practical models, technical capacity, dedicated support, and political will to deliver lasting reforms.

This side event to the CBD’s Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI-7) in Nairobi, Kenya, came ahead of the first major global stocktake on implementation of the GBF at the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CBD COP 17) this October. The event, hosted by IISD and Conservation International, aimed to increase ambition and accelerate progress toward Target 18. It showcased two examples of collective efforts to achieve this:

• Informal Friends of Target 18 initiative: Hosted by IISD and co-chaired by Finland and Colombia, this group convenes countries and relevant stakeholders to exchange on key actions, practical tools, and policy options that will advance progress on Target 18.
• Accelerating Rapid Transition of Subsidies and Incentives (ARTSI) Initiative: Developed by Conservation International, this initiative aims to contribute to the implementation of Target 18 by piloting practical models of reform, co-designing a funding mechanism to advance reform, and raising global awareness to help build political will.

Speakers included representatives from IISD, Conservation International, UN Development Programme’s Biodiversity Finance Initiative, and the governments of Botswana, Colombia, Fiji, Kenya, and the Netherlands.

Later in the day, IISD hosted a dinner in collaboration with the FAIRR Initiative and the World Wildlife Fund to convene government representatives and technical experts for a discussion on reforming public support in the food and agriculture sector.

Visit the CBD website for more information.