UNFF and CBD Secretariats collaborate on Joint Initiative

On 17 July 2024, UNFFS Director Ms. Juliette Biao met with Ms. Astrid Schomaker, Executive Secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) to discuss collaboration on harnessing synergies between the global forest and biodiversity agendas. As part of the meeting, the UNFF and CBD Secretariats signed a UN-to-UN transfer agreement to support implementation of an ongoing Joint Initiative.

The main expected outcome of the initiative is to strengthen the capacity of countries to accelerate actions on forest conservation to contribute to the implementation of both the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the UN Strategic Plan for Forests 20217-2030. This will be done by aligning forest-related policies and action plans, National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) and voluntary national contributions to the UNFF, harmonizing databases and indicators, and fostering efforts among countries and entities to collectively elevate the recognition of natural forests. The UNFF and CBD Secretariats are collaborating to organize a Forest Day during the CBD COP-16 to be held in Cali, Colombia from 21 October to 1 November 2024.