UN report finds fewer than half of national biodiversity targets on track before COP17

16 October 2026

A new United Nations report finds that fewer than half of the national targets set to protect the world's plants, animals and ecosystems are on track.
It was launched in Yerevan, Armenia, days before countries gather there for the COP17 biodiversity conference.
The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, agreed in Montreal in 2022, set out a goal of protecting at least 30 per cent of land, inland waters, coasts and oceans by 2030.
Even if current commitments are met, only 26 per cent of land and 12 per cent of the ocean would be protected by that deadline, the report finds.
Nearly 90 per cent of parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity have set national targets and more than half have drawn up plans to deliver them, while more than 70 per cent have reported on results.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said at the launch that the war on nature has not yet ended, and that biodiversity must be part of every decision across policies, regulations and budgets.