Rwanda has committed to increase the resources and funds spent on biodiversity preservation and restoration from current 0.5-0.9 per cent to two per cent of the national GDP in line with the global goal to double the percentage of GDP spent on biodiversity preservation and restoration. The commitment was made as the UN Biodiversity Conference, also known as COP15 that runs from December 7 to December 19 in Montreal, Canada The country also committed to prevent the extinction of threatened species particularly for those that are most at risk of extinction and restore species of ecological importance. At the UN Biodiversity Conference, Rwanda’s delegation will be led by Minister Jeanne d'Arc Mujawamariya. The delegation will participate in negotiations as well as side events and bilateral meetings with partners Rwanda is calling on nations of the world to join hands and agree on an ambitious Global Biodiversity Framework. The UN Biodiversity Conference is convening nations to agree on a new set of goals for nature through the Convention on Biological Diversity post-2020 framework. The conference is held under the theme “Ecological Civilization-Building a Shared Future for All Life on Earth.” At the conference, Rwanda will advocate for a strong and ambitious Global Biodiversity Framework with specific targets that can be implemented with the commensurate financing, technical support and technology transfer - underpinned by cooperation. The country will also call for increased transboundary collaboration to protect and restore biodiversity across borders. “We have a once in a generation opportunity to protect and restore biodiversity and reset our relationship with nature. At the UN Biodiversity Conference in Montreal, nations of the world must put nature first and agree on a new global framework that protects all life on earth. The biodiversity crisis is too urgent and too great to delay any longer,” Mujawamariya said. The post-2020 global biodiversity framework will provide a strategic vision and a global roadmap for the conservation, protection, restoration and sustainable management of biodiversity and ecosystems for the next decade. Rwanda is playing its part by protecting nature and restoring biodiversity and is committed to promote biodiversity conservation including revitalisation and expansion of national parks to contribute to the global target of protecting 30 per cent of land and sea by 2030, and 50 percent under protection by 2050. According to the statement released ahead of the conference, Rwanda is committed to maintain at least 30 per cent of the country’s forest cover, increasing carbon stocks and contributing to climate change mitigation and adaptation. “Rwanda is committed to preventing the extinction of threatened species, particularly for those that are most at risk of extinction and restoring species of ecological importance, promoting a better understanding of biodiversity and climate change through the national curriculum and mainstreaming across the economy and transboundary collaboration in biodiversity conservation and sustainable development.” Rwanda is a member of the High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People and the World Economic Forum Champions for Nature - a community of leaders disrupting business-as-usual to lead the way to a nature-positive global economy and halt nature loss by 2030.
