Minister İbrahim Yumaklı spoke at the Leaders’ Summit held in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, as part of the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity. Yumaklı said Türkiye was determined to strengthen international cooperation in protecting biodiversity and promoting sustainable development.
Yumaklı congratulated the World Food Day celebrations, held under the theme “Innovate Today, Feed Tomorrow” under the leadership of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Noting that four years had passed since the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, Yumaklı said the framework offered a common road map to halt biodiversity loss and protect nature.
Yumaklı said the framework’s shared vision needed to be turned into concrete implementation and lasting results. He said it was important to facilitate access to finance and technology, expand capacity-building opportunities, and strengthen scientific and technical cooperation.
Yumaklı said international support needed to be increased, particularly so that developing countries could achieve their targets. He stressed the need to take different national circumstances and development priorities into account and to act with an understanding of equity and shared responsibility.
Türkiye’s biodiversity policy
Yumaklı said Türkiye was a country with rich biodiversity located at the intersection of three biogeographical regions, adding that they regarded protecting this wealth as a responsibility to future generations.
Yumaklı said the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan had been updated in line with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. He said protecting nature and sustainable development were not competing goals but complementary ones, adding that they regarded biodiversity protection as an integral part of development policies.
Yumaklı said climate change, biodiversity loss and land degradation were interconnected global challenges. He said climate change was increasing pressure on ecosystems, while ecosystem degradation was worsening the effects of climate change.
Yumaklı said land degradation directly affected food security, water resources and rural livelihoods. He added that strengthening cooperation among the Rio Conventions was important for transformative change.
COP31 to be held in Antalya
Yumaklı said this year marked an important period in which the conferences of the parties to the three Rio Conventions were being held. Recalling that the parties would meet again in Antalya next month as part of COP31, following Ulaanbaatar and Yerevan, Yumaklı said Türkiye aimed to hold COP31 as an “implementation COP” where climate commitments would be turned into concrete action.
Yumaklı said the aim was to strengthen cooperation among efforts to combat climate change, protect biodiversity, manage land and ensure food security. He stressed that commitments needed to be turned into concrete results. Yumaklı said Türkiye was ready to share its experience and contribute to joint solutions, adding that they also attached importance to bilateral cooperation platforms.
Nature protection and development
Speaking at a round-table meeting held as part of COP17, Yumaklı said protecting nature was not merely an environmental issue but a fundamental requirement for social welfare, resilience and sustainable development.
Yumaklı said food security, water resources, health and economic prosperity depended on healthy ecosystems. He said biodiversity loss threatened livelihoods and deepened existing vulnerabilities, adding that commitments needed to be turned into concrete results and international cooperation strengthened to achieve the 2030 targets.
Yumaklı said Türkiye’s 12th Development Plan integrated the protection of natural ecosystems, the restoration of degraded areas and the sustainable use of biological resources into development policies. He listed wetland restoration, combating erosion, protecting forests and sustainable agricultural practices among the main elements of these efforts.
Yumaklı said the Great Green Wall Initiative in Africa, with which Türkiye had developed a partnership, was one example showing that ecosystem restoration and sustainable development goals could be advanced together. He said the initiative contributed to restoring degraded land, supporting local livelihoods and increasing community resilience.
Minister Yumaklı recalled that Türkiye would host the COP31 meeting next month, saying it was time to turn commitments into concrete results and that Türkiye was ready to cooperate with all its partners.
