By Dare Akogun
The Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF) has issued a warning that urgent actions are needed to protect, restore, and sustainably manage the world’s forests to achieve global biodiversity goals.
The report, titled The Forest Factor: The Role of Protection, Restoration, and Sustainable Management of Forests for the Implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, was launched during Forest and Water Day at the ongoing 2024 United Nations Biodiversity Conference (COP16) on Friday.
Led by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), and the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF), the CPF report highlights that forest conservation is essential to achieve the targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF).
It addresses critical global challenges such as climate change and sustainable development and presents policy recommendations for reversing deforestation, halting degradation, and strengthening the health of forest ecosystems.
“This report delivers a clear message: conservation, restoration, and sustainable management and use are crucial for achieving the KMGBF targets,” said Zhimin Wu, CPF Chairperson and Director of FAO’s Forestry Division.
“This is a pivotal moment to connect biodiversity, climate change, hunger, and poverty as we journey from the 2024 UN Biodiversity Conference to the 2025 UN Climate Conference.”
Forests, which cover 31 percent of the Earth’s surface, provide shelter to 80 percent of terrestrial biodiversity, including a vast number of birds, reptiles, and mammals.
However, the extinction rate of forest species has soared to 1,000 times higher than historical norms, the report reveals.
It further emphasizes forests’ role in climate regulation and their substantial economic value, alongside the steep costs of biodiversity loss resulting from ongoing deforestation and degradation.
In addition to supporting biodiversity, forests play a crucial role in carbon storage, water regulation, and energy balance.
They also bolster other ecosystems, such as freshwater and coastal marine environments.
Despite these contributions, challenges such as climate change, forest degradation, species exploitation, and the spread of invasive species persist, fueling biodiversity loss.
The report also notes that wildfires now account for nearly 33 percent of global tree cover loss.
The CPF report underscores that achieving KMGBF goals requires improved forest management, restoration, and conservation, alongside integration into National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans.
It cautions that forests often receive insufficient attention when grouped with other ecosystems, hindering dedicated efforts toward their conservation and sustainable management.
Comprising 16 international organizations, CPF serves as an inter-agency partnership focused on supporting countries to scale up forest action for biodiversity preservation, climate change adaptation, and sustainable development.
As Nigeria grapples with the consequences of deforestation and climate-related challenges, the CPF’s message emphasizes that safeguarding forests is essential to meeting national and global biodiversity objectives.
