Kunming Biodiversity Fund to support conservation in developing nations

The Kunming Biodiversity Fund will stick to the approach of multilateralism and internationalized operation, work primarily through providing grants, to support biodiversity conservation in developing countries, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Thursday.

Mao made the remarks at a regular press conference when asked to comment on the signing ceremony of the Kunming Biodiversity Fund in Beijing.

Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Inger Andersen, who attended the ceremony, said that the launch of the fund is a tremendous contribution China has made to developing countries, as it shows support for developing countries in biodiversity conservation and restoration.

Mao said the Chinese government attaches great importance to biodiversity conservation, and is committed to working with all countries to build a community of all life on Earth. China has taken the lead to invest 1.5 billion yuan (roughly $207 million) for the founding of the fund.

Mao said on the morning of May 28, China, the UNEP and the UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office together signed the cooperation agreements to officially launch the fund.

The fund will stick to the approach of multilateralism and internationalized operation, work primarily through providing grants, and focus on the three major goals of the Convention on Biological Diversity, namely, conservation of biological diversity, sustainable use of the components of the biodiversity, and fair and equitable sharing of benefits, to support biodiversity conservation in developing countries and contribute to the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, said Mao.

She said China is ready to work with the international community and, through the fund, deepen international cooperation and build global synergy on biodiversity conservation, to create a better future of harmony between humanity and nature.

(Cover: A Yunnan snub-nosed monkey in Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, southwest China, October 30, 2022. /CFP)