Operationalizing the biodiversity Global Review to strengthen CBD effectiveness: priorities for COP17 and beyond

Against this backdrop, this joint study by IDDRI and PBL seeks to contribute to ongoing discussions among Parties and stakeholders on what an effective Global Review mechanism could look like, and how it could work in practice to realize its full potential. This paper approaches the global review as a core element of international environmental governance, with potentially important implications for long-term international cooperation. 

The objectives of the paper are threefold: (1) articulate a positive long-term vision of what the Global Review could become and the benefits it could offer to Parties and stakeholders if designed in a meaningful process; (2) propose a set of short and medium-term options to make this vision and role as operational as possible, including choices related to process, formats and follow-up; (3) explore the role the review could play in enhancing national and international implementation while also preparing the ground for the post-2030 framework. 

They key messages of the report are as follows: 

1. The Global Review is not merely a technical reporting exercise, but a mechanism aimed at assessing whether the GBF is delivering tangible outcomes towards agreed action targets and long-term goals and identifying the enablers to be implemented and the obstacles to be overcome. As such, it should be conceived as a multi-stakeholder, evidence-based and outcome-oriented process, and a key lever for strengthening the effectiveness of the CBD, grounded in national implementation realities and built through a bottom-up and inclusive approach.
2. The first Global Review will benefit from over 120 national reports provided by Parties as an important evidence base for the global report, complemented by additional sources provided by stakeholders. This provides a strong foundation for stocktake. However, important methodological and data limitations remain and need to be acknowledged transparently. These limitations highlight both the complexity of assessing progress and the need to strengthen the CBD’s monitoring and review over time.
3. COP17 will be key to translate the diagnosis into momentum and levers for transformation. Even as a first exercise, its findings can help identifying barriers to GBF implementation and informing prioritization of where support and reforms are most needed. Parties and stakeholders should seek to highlight these levers while avoiding two risks: formulating overly general findings that would fail to support action, and explicit attribution of roles and responsibilities which may lead to political deadlocks.
4. Dedicated dialogues ahead of and at COP17 (across levels, sectors or thematic priorities) will be essential to clarify expected outputs and the results they should trigger post-COP17. This should be complemented by clear stages of high-level engagement from decision-makers, to translate findings into political signals, coordinated action and follow-up within CBD and beyond.
5. The Global Review should be seen as part of a longer-term cycle. As such, it should evolve into a permanent mechanism for collective responsibility and accountability mechanism. For this to materialize, the first iteration at COP17 must already demonstrate its ability to inform action and cooperation.

This paper is intended as a contribution to collective reflection by Parties and stakeholders. It does not aim to provide definitive answers but puts forward recommendations and analytical insights to inform current and future discussions and negotiations.