The Second Dialogue Seminar on Scaling up Finance for Biodiversity- Quito, Ecuador

 

The Second Dialogue Seminar on Scaling up Finance for Biodiversity, co-hosted by the Governments of Ecuador, India, Japan, Norway, Republic of Korea, Sweden, Uganda and the European Commission, to be held on 9-12 April 2014 in Quito, Ecuador.

As you may recall, the first Dialogue Seminar, held in March 2012, discussed the importance of scaling up finance for biodiversity, in particular biodiversity financing mechanisms, instruments and safeguards. Held under the Chatham House Rule, the seminar provided a platform for participants to share their views and identify areas of convergence. The summary report is available at: www.cbd.int/financial/quitoseminar.  Furthermore, in its Decision XI/4, paragraph 20, the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) noted the reports of the informal seminar dialogue, which was organized to enhance understanding among participants with a view to facilitating discussions at the fourth meeting of the Working Group on Review of Implementation of the Convention and the eleventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties.

Following a similar approach, the second dialogue seminar will focus on the implementation of Aichi Biodiversity Targets 2, 3 and 20 in the context of Decision XI/4 and its three sections on target-setting, the review of the implementation of the strategy for resource mobilization and the roadmap. Particular attention will be given to the different ways of assessing the value of biodiversity and ecosystem services and the mechanisms to integrate these values into decision-making. More specifically, the dialogue will:

(i)            Enhance mutual understanding of the different views and perspectives on financing for biodiversity that are otherwise difficult to achieve in formal negotiations;

(ii)           Review the importance of integrating the values of biodiversity and, in this context, explore opportunities for incorporating positive incentive measures;

(iii)          Share best practices and lessons learned on potential risks and benefits of biodiversity financial mechanisms, as well as principles and safeguards in their use;
(iv)          Exchange country experiences in mobilizing financial and non-financial resources and, in this regard, identify gaps and needs for the effective implementation of the strategy for resource mobilization; and
(v)           Build synergies with the Rio Conventions, Ministries of External Affairs, poverty-related issues, the Post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.

The dialogue seminar will not negotiate recommendations, though an output reflecting the enhanced understanding of both convergence and divergence will be presented to WGRI 5 and COP 12. The dialogue seminar will include a mix of keynote presentations, case studies and small group discussions.

               

Participants are expected to be key actors on financing for biodiversity, including experts active in CBD discussions on resource mobilization and also from related processes, as well as national level actors from sectors dealing with financing of biodiversity and ecosystem services, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, social movements, farmer organizations, indigenous and local communities, scientists and the private sector.

               

Accordingly, I would like to invite intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations and relevant organizations to nominate a representative to participate in this dialogue seminar. The nominee should be well-informed of the CBD Strategy for Resource Mobilization and comfortable working in English or Spanish, which will be the languages of the workshop. Nominations should be made by heads of organizations, including a brief curriculum vitae of the representative, and sent to secretariat@cbd.int  as soon as possible but no later than 31 January 2014.

The hosts wish to facilitate the participation from developing countries and therefore the governments of Ecuador, Sweden, Norway and Japan, are making limited funding available for NGOs, especially from developing countries.

Further details regarding the dialogue seminar, including the agenda and other documents, will be made available on the meeting website (http://www.cbd.int/doc/?meeting=DS-FB-02) in due course.

The text of this notification is also available on the CBD website at: http://www.cbd.int/doc/notifications/2014/ntf-2014-005-financial-en.pdf

Image by Michael Leveille