The International Day for Biological Diversity is observed annually on 22 May.  

This year’s theme “Acting locally for global impact” highlights the critical role of local action in delivering effective responses to global challenges. 

It also underscores the importance of local action to achieve the Kunming-Montreal Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), a plan to halt and reverse biodiversity loss through 23 global targets adopted at the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). 

The theme strongly aligns with FAO’s mandate and its commitment to supporting countries in implementing their National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs).  

To inform these efforts, FAO has released a Policy Brief on Agrifood Systemsin National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans, drawing on the analysis of NBSAPs from 78 countries. It assesses how agrifood systems contribute to the global biodiversity targets.  Initial findings show that 36 percent of planned actions to address biodiversity loss are linked to agrifood systems. In some countries, these actions account for up to 80 percent of planned biodiversity efforts. 

The Policy Brief also presents policy recommendations to help move from commitments to implementation across agrifood systems. 

The full global analysis and its methodology will be published in the coming months and will inform the CBD’s global review of progress towards the KMGBF targets, to be presented at COP17 in October this year in Yerevan, Armenia.

For more information, visit the FAO Biodiversity website or contact us: [email protected].