Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, announced in a letter on July 14 the revised dates for the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP-15) and other related meetings.

Originally scheduled to October 2020 in China's Kunming, the COP-15 was rescheduled to May 17-30 in 2021 due the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Convention on Biological Diversity is a multilateral treaty signed by 196 parties. The Convention has three main goals: the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources.

The COP-15 in 2021 will aim to discuss a post-2020 framework in preserving global biodiversity as well as sustainable development under the premises of preserving biodiversity.

The Secretariat of the convention expressed its appreciation over the Chinese government in the letter for its continued commitment and sustained efforts in keeping the momentum towards the successful adoption of an ambitious post-2020 global biodiversity framework.