MEPs want the EU to do its utmost to support the protection of biodiversity and vulnerable ecosystems in developing countries, with more coherent EU policies and more investment in protecting and restoring fragile ecosystems and protecting indigenous peoples.
Their debate on the evening of Monday 4 October showed a broad consensus ahead of a vote on the role of development policy in addressing biodiversity loss in developing countries (see EUROPE 12803/15, 12667/16).
The rapporteur, Michèle Rivasi (Greens/EFA, France), stressed the importance of this text a few days before the high-level segment of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15, 11-15 October, online) to prepare for COP15 in Kunming (25 April - 8 May 2022).
“This report is a tribute to all those who have left, killed or persecuted defending their land - indigenous and local communities. Unfortunately this is still going on”, she said, insisting that the EU should recognise “its responsibility for the increase in land grabbing and forest destruction, but without falling into the trap of imposing colonial forest conservation practices”. The nature-based solutions advocated in the report are, in her view, preferable.
Stressing that “developing countries have small budgets for environmental protection and therefore need our support”, Marlene Mortler (EPP, Germany) called for guaranteed funding based on impact assessments, as “what is missing are the correlations between biodiversity loss, its causes and the fight to stem it”.
Carlos Zorrinho (S&D, Portugal) stressed the need to monitor the impact of EU policies on developing countries under the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
For Catherine Chabaud (Renew Europe, France), the ‘Great Green Wall’, financed by the EU to the tune of €750 million per year by 2025, is an example of what can be done.
Dominique Bilde (ID, France) supported “the philosophy of the report, which is based on localism”, but refused to allow the EU to assume global leadership, given China’s responsibility.
Krzysztof Jurgiel (ECR, Poland) welcomed the emphasis on the links between farming systems and food and on cooperation with indigenous peoples, but will reportedly abstain because of a reference to the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.
Criticising “the cynicism of the commodification of nature, which hinders development”, João Pimenta Lopes (The Left, Portugal) called for “real cooperation focused on satisfying the needs of the people by allowing production in these countries”.
The Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, recalled that for the next 7 years the European Commission is doubling its external funding for global biodiversity (see EUROPE 12791/2).
The draft resolution: https://bit.ly/3Beo1Kc (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)