140 participating nations of COP 15 adopt UNDP Nature Pledge

Montreal [Canada], December 19 : The Fifteenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 15) held at Montreal Canada concluded on a positive note today. The 140 participating nations of the COP 15 adopted the 'UNDP Nature Pledge', according to an official statement of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
During the event, a historic agreement was reached at the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. All the participants agreed to preserve and protect nature with the help of the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), according to the statement by UNDP.
The UNDP statement also mentioned that the GBF is intended to stop biodiversity loss. This is to conserve and restore the land and sea for the protection of our planet. The Nature Pledge also intends to protect the rights of indigenous people and local communities.
The entire plan includes various targets that need to be achieved for stopping the ongoing biodiversity loss of the earth. Although how the nations fund and proceed towards achieving the expected biodiversity goals will be monitored and reported, according to the statement.
Previously, Union Minister Bhupendra Yadav had said that the goals and targets set in the Global Biodiversity Framework should be ambitious, yet realistic and practical.
Yadav was addressing the Stocktaking Plenary at UN Biodiversity Conference, COP15 at Montreal, Canada, said a statement by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
Addressing the Plenary, Yadav said," I acknowledge the contribution of the parties for their valuable contribution and hope that this conference reaches a consensus on putting in place the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework."
"Reversing ecosystem degradation and halting global biodiversity loss is essential for socio-economic development, human well-being, and for advancing global sustainability," he added.
"The goals and targets set in the Global Biodiversity Framework should be ambitious; yet realistic and practical. Conservation of biodiversity must also be based on Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective capabilities as the climate change processes affect biodiversity," he stated.
For developing nations, agriculture is a paramount economic driver for rural communities, and the critical support provided to these sectors cannot be redirected. When food security is of paramount importance for developing countries, prescribing numerical targets for pesticide reductions is unnecessary and must be left to countries to decide, based on national circumstances, priorities and capabilities.
Biodiversity conservation requires ecosystems to be conserved and restored holistically and in an integrated manner. It is in this context that Ecosystem Approaches for the conservation of biodiversity need to be adopted rather than nature-based solutions.
The successful implementation of the framework will squarely depend on the ways and means we put in place for an equally ambitious Resource Mobilization Mechanism. Hence there is a need to create a new and dedicated mechanism for the provision of financial resources to developing-country Parties.
India is fully committed to working closely with all parties so that we are all able to bring out an ambitious and realistic GBF in COP 15.