New Delhi, Oct 9, IRNA - The UN biodiversity meeting that kicked off Monday in Hyderabad, capital city of Andhra Pradesh state, would discuss the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-20, its 20 Aichi Biodiversity Targets and the status of biodiversity in world's oceans among others.
The eleventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 11) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), to be held until October 19, would review issues like the progress of the strategic plan, process of integration of biodiversity conservation in national policies by governments, the Aichi targets, resource mobilisation, marine and coastal biodiversity and the ratification of Nagoya Protocol.
In her inaugural address India’s Minister of State Environment and Forest Jayanthi Natarajan said that Expenditure on conserving biodiversity should be looked as an investment for the future and the present global economic crisis should not discourage countries from putting in funds, pti reported. She said resource mobilisation is the most important unfinished agenda after COP-10.
"The present global economic crisis should not deter us, but on the contrary encourage us to invest more towards amelioration of the natural capital for ensuring uninterrupted ecosystem service, on which all life on earth depends," she added.
At the COP 10 in Japan, delegates agreed on 20 new targets for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity for the next ten years, and developed a vision for 2050. These were named the "Aichi Targets" after the region where the meeting was held.
The new targets include increasing the area of protected land across the world to 17 per cent and protected oceans to 10 per cent, as well as the challenge to 'mainstream biodiversity information' across all levels of society, from the general public, to schools and businesses.
Braulio Ferreira De Souza Dias, the Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), in his address said the strategic plan for biodiversity 2011-2020 and its Aichi Biodiversity targets will be central to CBD actions in this decade.
At the meeting, the government of India assumed the Presidency of COP 11. During their term, which runs from 2012 until 2014, the government of India will preside over the implementation of the work of the convention, including the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity and its Aichi Biodiversity Targets.
Over 160 countries are expected to participate in COP 11 and a ministerial segment is planned from October 16 to 19 where heads of state and ministers of environment will engage in discussions related to key themes of the conference.
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