Agrifood systems are playing an increasingly central role in countries' biodiversity strategies and actions, according to preliminary findings presented during a High-Level Roundtable hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) at its headquarters in Rome.
The event, held on Wednesday, on the margins of the sixth meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI-6) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), focused on how countries are transitioning from biodiversity planning to implementation under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, the global agreement adopted in 2022 to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030.
Drawing on FAO's analysis of updated National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs), discussions underscored the growing recognition that agrifood systems are both affected by biodiversity loss and essential to delivering biodiversity solutions.
"Biodiversity is the basis of food diversity, and is critical for ensuring food security and nutrition," said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu in his opening remarks. "Today's roundtable reaffirms agrifood systems as a strategic entry point for biodiversity conservation, high-quality growth and sustainability. But we must transform them to be more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable."
The Roundtable, titled "Agrifood systems taking action for nature," brought together high-level government representatives and international partners to examine how agrifood solutions are being integrated into national biodiversity strategies and country actions.
Hambardzum Matevosyan, Minister of Environment of Armenia, speaking in his capacity as incoming President of CBD COP17 - the next UN Biodiversity meeting being held later this year, stressed that COP17 will mark the halfway point toward the 2030 biodiversity targets and emphasized the need to translate commitments into measurable results. He underscored that biodiversity and food security are mutually reinforcing, noting that resilient agrifood systems depend on healthy ecosystems, genetic diversity and sustainable resource management. He further highlighted the importance of cross-sectoral cooperation, strengthened monitoring and scaled-up investment to ensure effective implementation of national biodiversity commitments.
Astrid Schomaker, Executive Secretary of the CBD, emphasized that feeding a growing global population requires a transition toward more sustainable and responsible production systems. She warned that biodiversity and pollinators continue to decline, with direct consequences for food security and resilience. She reiterated that the Global Biodiversity Framework must move from commitments to concrete implementation, through action plans that fully integrate agrifood systems. Targeted investments across the entire value chain, she noted, will be essential to ensure that biodiversity action delivers measurable benefits for both nature and agrifood systems.
Attendees also heard from representatives of Japan, Mexico and Nigeria, who shared national experiences in integrating agrifood systems into biodiversity planning, implementation and monitoring with reflections on catalyzing investments for biodiversity financing from a representative of the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
New evidence on agrifood systems and biodiversity action
FAO tracks biodiversity commitments to assess how agrifood systems (including agriculture, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture, the related value chains and their actors) are used in actions and policies in order to achieve national biodiversity targets. Preliminary results of this analysis indicate that 35 percent of all actions planned by countries to implement their national biodiversity targets are directly related to agrifood systems, collectively contributing across all 23 targets of the Global Biodiversity Framework. In fact, all countries who have submitted NBSAPs have included agrifood-related biodiversity actions. At the same time, 48 percent of countries report in their NBSAPs that biodiversity loss is already affecting or threatening agrifood systems. Among reported impacts, 33 percent cite effects on yields and productivity, while others highlight pressures linked to pests, invasive species, and rural livelihoods.
Many countries also identify significant capacity, monitoring and financing needs to ensure effective implementation of biodiversity commitments, reinforcing the importance of technical support, data systems and resource mobilization. The complete FAO NBSAPs Analysis will be published in the lead-up to COP17.
From planning to implementation ahead of COP17
The event builds on momentum generated under the Colombian Presidency of CBD COP16, where FAO, the Government of Colombia and the CBD Secretariat brought together ministries of agriculture and environment to launch the Agri-NBSAPs Support Initiative.
With countries now preparing their seventh National Reports under the CBD, discussions at SBI-6 and the FAO-hosted Roundtable contributed to shaping the next phase of implementation, monitoring and resource mobilization.
FAO continues to support Members as a custodian agency for several biodiversity-related indicators and through technical assistance aimed at aligning agrifood policies with biodiversity objectives.
