Statement by Ambassador Andranik Hovhannisyan at the 1584th meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council AoB: "COP17 on Biodiversity held in Yerevan from 19 to 30 October 2026"

05 November, 2026

Mr. Chair,

The delegation of Armenia would like to inform the Permanent Council about the main outcomes of the Seventeenth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, which Armenia hosted in Yerevan from 19 to 30 October 2026 under the theme “Taking Action for Nature.”

The COP17 was preceded by the Leaders’ Summit under the motto “Leaders for Nature”. It was the first-ever summit held within the framework of Biodiversity COP. The Summit resulted in the Yerevan Declaration “Acting for Nature”, in which leaders set out political priorities for achieving the global biodiversity goals.

COP17 brought together representatives of 182 Parties, alongside international organizations and other relevant stakeholders. It concluded with the adoption of nearly 50 decisions to advance the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Held at the halfway point towards the Framework’s 2030 targets, the Conference marked an important milestone in global biodiversity governance.

One of its most significant outcomes was the adoption of the decision on Global Review of collective progress in the implementing of the Framework. The Review recognized the progress achieved, particularly in developing national biodiversity strategies and setting national targets and identified the remaining gaps and challenges.

Building on these findings, Parties adopted the Yerevan Pathway, a key political outcome of the Armenian Presidency. The Pathway sets priorities for action through 2030, including tackling harmful subsidies and incentives, increasing financial, scientific and technical support for developing countries, aligning national budgets and economic decisions with the Framework, and strengthening monitoring, reporting and review.

Biodiversity financing remained one of the most challenging areas of negotiation. COP17 nevertheless reached agreement on important elements of the resource mobilization framework. These included a compromise on the future contributor base and on the process through which countries may signal their interest in joining the contributing countries. Alongside the negotiated outcomes, COP17 witnessed announcements of nearly USD 2 billion in new biodiversity-related funding and financial commitments.

An important institutional achievement of COP17 was the decision on the modus operandi of the new permanent subsidiary body on Article 8j, which requires each Party to respect, preserve and maintain the knowledge, innovation and practices of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities. In addition, the adoption of the Sevan Guidelines establishes an institutional foundation for strengthening the participation and contribution of indigenous peoples and local communities in the implementation of the Convention and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

COP17 also advanced work across a broad range of scientific and technical issues, from protected areas, forests and marine ecosystems to invasive species, synthetic biology and the risk assessment of living modified organisms, with a new emphasis on biodiversity education.

At the same time, the Armenian Presidency sought to launch practical initiatives that would sustain international cooperation beyond the Conference itself. Together with the CBD Secretariat and leading international organizations, we launched four flagship initiatives:

- the Yerevan Call on Incentives Positive to Biodiversity, including Friends of Target 18 and the Yerevan Biodiversity Finance Challenge;

- the Yerevan Platform on Mountains and Related Freshwater Ecosystems;

- the Yerevan Tech for Biodiversity Monitoring Hub;

- the Yerevan Global OECM Action Hub.

Mr. Chair,

For the first time ever the OSCE contributed to the Biodiversity COP as an observer. In particular, we thank the Office of the Co-Ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities, and Ambassador Bakyt Dzhusupov personally, for meaningful participation in the work of COP17 and for organizing the side event “Strengthening Ecosystems, Securing Futures: Transboundary Co-operation Between Armenia and Georgia” at the Armenian Pavilion on 28 October. The event showcased the ongoing OSCE-supported cooperation between Armenia and Georgia on climate resilience and wildfire risk reduction. We are also grateful for providing us with the opportunity for high-level presentations on the preparations of the COP17 at the two consecutive Economic and Environmental Forums.

The success of COP17 was made possible by the inclusive and constructive engagement of all Parties and stakeholders, including national delegations, the CBD Secretariat, international organizations, negotiators, experts, Indigenous Peoples and local communities, civil society, women and youth, academia and the private sector.

At a time when multilateral cooperation faces significant challenges, the outcomes of COP17 demonstrate that constructive engagement and political will can still deliver meaningful results.

With the conclusion of COP17, the international community enters a decisive phase in implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. As COP17 Presidency, Armenia remains committed to working closely with all Parties and stakeholders to keep the spirit of cooperation established in Yerevan alive.

Thank you, Mr. Chairperson.

MFA RA
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