According to the president of the event and Minister of Environment of Colombia, Susana Muhamad, in a press conference, the balance is positive in terms of the progress of negotiations and the expectations for the coming days of discussion.

“We already have at least two documents for COP16, five for the Cartagena Protocol and at least another five for the Nagoya Protocol, as well as another series of texts that will be approved tonight in the plenary session,” said the official.

She also highlighted that the meeting saw the largest participation ever recorded for this type of meeting with 20 thousand delegates. Muhamad said that although the agenda reviewed in the plenary session last Monday seemed complex, it now shows positive progress, especially in issues such as the work plan for indigenous peoples and local communities established in Article 8J of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted two years ago at COP15.

Regarding the mobilization of resources, the president stressed that a methodology was proposed that generates confidence among the delegates to reach an agreement on one of the most difficult issues up for debate today.

For her part, the secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Astrid Schomaker, revealed that all countries are working to finalize their national strategies and action plans on biodiversity.

“COP16 is a COP of encouragement, so that everyone works together. We understand that there are obstacles, but we can all help each other,” she said.

The Conference has been taking place since October 21 in this city in southwestern Colombia in two spaces, one in the Blue Zone, at the Valle del Pacífico Events Center; and another in the Green Zone, located on Cali’s Bulevar del Río, which seeks to promote the participation of civil society.

According to government sources, more than 190 delegations are attending the event, which will conclude on November 1.

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