Joint Statement of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests
CBD COP17

With three Rio Convention COPs taking place in 2026, the CPF emphasizes the opportunity to consider forests not through any single agenda, but through the full range of sustainable development and nature-based solutions outcomes they support.

Forests connect climate ambition, biodiversity conservation, ecosystem integrity, land restoration, sustainable production systems, sustainable trade and supply chains, food and water security, and rural livelihoods in ways that are direct, practical and visible. Therefore, they underpin economic resilience and stability.

The first global review of collective progress in the implementation of the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) will provide a critical opportunity to take stock of progress, identify remaining gaps and priorities, and inform the further actions needed to accelerate implementation. 

Forests are central to achieving KMGBF goals and targets, including on spatial planning, ecosystem restoration, area-based conservation, sustainable use, climate change and biodiversity, social and economic resilience, and the integration of biodiversity into policies and productive sectors.

The strategic review of and update to the expanded programme of work on forest biodiversity in the context of KMGBF provides an important opportunity to strengthen the implementation of multilateral forest-related commitments and actions, including through their integration into national biodiversity strategies and action plans (NBSAPs). The complementary nature between the KMGBF and the UN Strategic Plan for Forests provides an opportunity for this integration. This work can also contribute to implementation of the Global Stocktake goal under the Paris Agreement to halt and reverse deforestation and forest degradation by 2030 and complement emerging initiatives such as the COP30 Presidency's Forest Roadmap that seeks to accelerate coordinated action across sectors and institutions.

Moving from ambition to implementation at scale will include strengthening the conservation of primary and other high-integrity forests, accelerating ecosystem restoration and reducing deforestation and forest degradation, enhancing sustainable forest management and biodiversity-positive production, trade and supply chains, based on the latest available scientific information, and recognizing the knowledge, rights and contributions of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, women, youth and related stakeholders. Accelerating progress will also require stronger governance, enforcement and cross-border cooperation to address illegal activities and environmental crime that drive forest loss and degradation.

Scaling coordinated forest-based actions and synergies can reduce duplication, strengthen coherence and generate benefits for countries and their economies, while providing a visible example of strengthened cooperation and implementation across the Rio Conventions and other related multilateral agreements.

Through implementation of its Work Plan 2025–2028 and joint initiatives, the CPF can add value: by bringing together organizations and Conventions with complementary mandates, scientific and technical expertise, tools and country-level support to help advance an integrated approach. Recent CPF regional workshops held in Maputo, Mozambique, bringing together 13 Southern African countries in partnership with the GEF DSL-IP, and joint work on sustainable woodfuel value chains in Zambia, demonstrate how the CPF can directly support countries in cross-sectoral policy alignment and biodiversity mainstreaming. 

Going forward the CPF would like to highlight three practical priorities for advancing implementation:

First, country-led policy coherence should be strengthened, so that forest commitments are better reflected across climate, land, agriculture, conservation, energy and development plans, as well as at the transboundary and regional levels. More specifically, actions at all levels should be promoted to advance the global forest related goals, targets and international obligations, including the Global Forest Goals and targets of the UN Strategic Plan for Forests, the objectives of the three Rio Conventions and other relevant multilateral environmental agreements, in a coherent and synergetic manner, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.

Second, more accurate and interoperable forest data, monitoring and reporting systems, including digital tools are needed to reduce reporting burdens on countries while improving evidence-based and reliable data and information for science-based decision-making.

Third, more predictable, accessible and sustained financing from public and private, domestic and international sources, together with strong partnerships is essential to accelerate implementation, so that forest-related investments and joint activities better support forests, climate, biodiversity and land objectives in a coherent and mutually supportive manner, rather than through separate and competing channels.

The CPF stands ready to support Parties and partners in advancing these priorities and help to ensure that forests can become one of the best examples where global commitments meet practical action, across conventions, sectors, and landscapes.