Legislation Tracker

Which countries are taking measures that encourage companies to contribute to the Cali Fund?

The international agreement establishing the Cali Fund invites countries to "take administrative, policy or legislative measures" that incentivise contributions to the Cali Fund.

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countries with legislation encouraging Cali Fund contributions

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countries where such legislation is under discussion

United Kingdom

  • Friends of the Cali Fund Member: yes
  • CBD Party
  • Nagoya Party
  • BBNJ Agreement Party
  1. No Legislation or administrative measure proposed yet (reached)
  2. Legislation or administrative measure proposed
  3. Legislation introduced
  4. Legislation passed into law
  5. Legislation or administrative measure in effect

Overview

The UK has taken a non-regulatory approach to implementing CBD Decision 16/2, reflecting that contributions to the Cali Fund are voluntary for UK-based DSI users. Its efforts have focused on raising awareness, building trust and developing incentives for private-sector participation, alongside international efforts to advance implementation of the multilateral mechanism.

Proposed legislation / administrative measure

The UK has not proposed specific legislation or mandatory measures for Cali Fund contributions. Instead, it is pursuing private-sector engagement through the Friends of the Cali Fund, business and biodiversity initiatives, and dialogue with companies and industry networks. Defra has also conducted a review of DSI databases potentially falling within Decision 16/2

Key developments

June 2025 - The UK and Chile launched the Friends of the Cali Fund convene governments and stakeholders and explore stronger government–business engagement.

July 2024 - Defra commissioned an ICF study comparing a mandatory levy, flat fee and subscription model

Statements

30 June 2026 - The Friends of the Cali Fund joint statement, published by Defra, commits signatories to promote the Cali Fund as the globally relevant fund for DSI benefit-sharing and to give users legal and policy clarity by avoiding duplicate or stacked benefit-sharing obligations.

November 2024, COP16 closing plenary - The UK urged adoption, praising the compromise spirit that allowed agreement on difficult material (ENB).

ABS legislation

The Nagoya Protocol (Compliance) Regulations 2015 (SI 2015/821), retained after EU exit and enforced by the Office for Product Safety and Standards.

Regulatory context

The UK operates a user-compliance regime under the Nagoya Protocol (Compliance) Regulations 2015, retained after EU exit: users must exercise due diligence and file declarations, enforced by the Office for Product Safety and Standards. The UK does not regulate access to its own genetic resources and DSI is not covered, so contributions to the Cali Fund are voluntary for UK users.