The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the institutional representative of more than 45 million companies in over 170 countries, has formally signaled its support for the "Friends of the Cali Fund" initiative, marking a critical juncture in the global effort to harmonize biodiversity conservation with economic activity. In a statement released following the latest rounds of multilateral negotiations, the ICC emphasized that while the global business community recognizes the intrinsic value of nature and the necessity of its preservation, the success of any new financial mechanism depends heavily on its practical implementation and its ability to provide legal certainty for the private sector. The ICC’s endorsement of the initiative’s recent declaration underscores a growing consensus that the private sector must be a central partner in addressing the barriers to a multilateral mechanism for benefit-sharing arising from the use of Digital Sequence Information (DSI) on genetic resources.
The Cali Fund, named after the host city of the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP16) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Colombia, represents a proposed global fund designed to collect and distribute financial benefits derived from the use of DSI. For years, the international community has debated how to ensure that the commercialization of genetic data—often stored in open-access public databases—benefits the countries and indigenous communities from which the original genetic material originated. The ICC has now positioned itself as a primary stakeholder ready to collaborate with governments and other parties to ensure that this mechanism is not only effective in reaching biodiversity goals but is also "coherent, effective, and workable" for the global industries that drive innovation in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and agriculture.
The Context of Digital Sequence Information and Biodiversity Governance
To understand the significance of the ICC’s recent engagement, one must look at the evolving landscape of international environmental law. Traditionally, the Nagoya Protocol under the CBD established a bilateral framework for Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS). Under this system, a researcher or company seeking to use a physical genetic resource (such as a rare plant or microbe) would negotiate a contract with the provider country. However, the advent of high-speed genomic sequencing has transformed biological research. Today, scientists often do not need the physical specimen; they can access its genetic blueprint—Digital Sequence Information—via online databases.
The transition from physical access to digital access created a "loophole" in the Nagoya Protocol, as the existing bilateral framework was not designed to handle the rapid, borderless flow of digital data. Developing nations, often the most "biodiversity-rich," argued that the use of DSI without compensation constituted a form of "biopiracy." Conversely, the scientific and business communities expressed concerns that restrictive regulations on digital data would stifle innovation, delay the development of life-saving medicines, and hinder global food security.
The "Friends of the Cali Fund" initiative seeks to bridge this gap by championing a multilateral mechanism. Unlike the bilateral approach, a multilateral system would likely involve a global fund where users of DSI contribute a portion of their profits or revenue, which is then redistributed to support conservation efforts worldwide, particularly in the Global South.
A Chronology of the Multilateral Mechanism Negotiations
The path toward the Cali Fund has been marked by several years of intensive diplomatic efforts:
- December 2022 (COP15, Montreal): The landmark Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) was adopted. Crucially, "Decision 15/9" was reached, which explicitly agreed to establish a multilateral mechanism for benefit-sharing from the use of DSI, including a global fund. It was decided that the mechanism should be finalized by COP16.
- 2023 (Intersessional Meetings): An Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Benefit-sharing from the Use of DSI was established. This group met in Geneva and Montreal to debate the technicalities of the fund, including who should pay, how much, and how the funds should be governed.
- August 2024 (Montreal): The second meeting of the Working Group saw significant progress but left several "bracketed" (unresolved) issues regarding the scale of contributions and the legal nature of the mechanism (voluntary vs. mandatory).
- October 2024 (COP16, Cali): The "Friends of the Cali Fund" initiative gained momentum as a coalition of countries and stakeholders committed to operationalizing the fund. The ICC’s recent declaration is a response to this specific push, signaling business readiness to move from theoretical support to practical design.
Supporting Data: The Economic and Scientific Stakes
The scale of the industries reliant on DSI is immense, explaining why the ICC is taking a proactive stance. According to various economic assessments, the global bioeconomy is valued in the trillions of dollars. A study cited during CBD negotiations suggested that sectors such as pharmaceuticals, industrial biotechnology, and agricultural seeds—all of which utilize DSI—generate annual revenues exceeding $1.5 trillion.
Data from the International Nucleotide Sequence Database Collaboration (INSDC), which includes GenBank, shows that there are over 240 million sequences currently available to the public. These sequences are accessed millions of times daily by researchers across the globe. The ICC argues that any benefit-sharing mechanism must be proportionate to avoid "economic distortion." If the contribution rate is set too high, it could discourage companies from utilizing these public resources, potentially slowing down the transition to a bio-based economy.
Current proposals for the Cali Fund suggest contribution rates ranging from 0.1% to 1% of profits or revenue from products developed using DSI. If a 0.1% levy were applied to the relevant sectors, the fund could potentially generate upwards of $1 billion annually for biodiversity conservation—a significant increase from current levels of international biodiversity finance.
The Business Perspective: Five Pillars for Success
The ICC’s support is contingent upon the alignment of the multilateral mechanism with Paragraph 9 of CBD Decision 15/9. This paragraph outlines the criteria that the mechanism must meet to be considered successful. In its advocacy, the ICC has highlighted several core requirements that the business community views as non-negotiable:
1. Legal Certainty and Clarity
Businesses require a predictable legal environment. The ICC emphasizes that the Cali Fund must replace the current "patchwork" of national DSI regulations. If companies are required to navigate both a global fund and varying national laws for the same digital data, the administrative burden would become untenable.
2. Proportionality and Economic Feasibility
The ICC maintains that contributions must be proportionate to the benefit derived. It warns against "double-counting" or "double-payment" scenarios where a company might pay into the global fund while also being subject to bilateral payment obligations under the Nagoya Protocol for the original physical resource.
3. Support for Research and Innovation
A primary concern for the ICC is that the mechanism must not hinder the "open science" model that has been the foundation of genomic research. The ICC advocates for a system that triggers payments at the point of commercialization rather than at the point of access, ensuring that basic research and academic inquiry remain unimpeded.
4. Governance and Transparency
The ICC has called for a governance structure for the Cali Fund that involves the private sector and other stakeholders. Transparency in how the funds are disbursed—ensuring they actually reach conservation projects on the ground—is vital for maintaining corporate "buy-in."
5. Alignment with International Instruments
The ICC stresses that the DSI mechanism must be coherent with other international frameworks, such as the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Pandemic Preparedness Treaty and the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources.
Official Responses and Stakeholder Reactions
The ICC’s willingness to engage has been met with cautious optimism by other parties. Representatives from the "Friends of the Cali Fund" initiative have noted that private sector involvement is essential for the fund’s viability. "We cannot have a fund without the funders," noted one European delegate during the Montreal talks. "The ICC’s recognition of the need for collaboration is a positive signal that we are moving toward a pragmatic solution."
However, groups representing Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) have expressed a more nuanced view. While they welcome the potential for new funding, they emphasize that the "fair and equitable" part of the benefit-sharing must be prioritized. Many IPLC advocates argue that a portion of the Cali Fund should be directly accessible to indigenous groups, who are the traditional guardians of the world’s biodiversity, rather than being filtered solely through national governments.
Developing nations, particularly the African Group and the Like-Minded Megadiverse Countries, have pushed for a mandatory contribution system. They argue that a voluntary system would fail to generate the necessary resources. The ICC’s emphasis on "avoiding economic distortion" is often seen as a counter-argument to high mandatory levies, highlighting the ongoing tension between the need for resource mobilization and the need for economic competitiveness.
Analysis of Implications: The Road to Implementation
The ICC’s proactive stance suggests that the global business community has accepted that the status quo—unregulated access to DSI—is no longer politically sustainable. By helping to shape the Cali Fund, the ICC is attempting to secure a "grand bargain": a predictable, modest global fee in exchange for guaranteed, unhindered access to the world’s genetic data.
If the "Friends of the Cali Fund" and the ICC can successfully negotiate a workable mechanism, the implications for global biodiversity are profound. It would mark the first time that the global economy has successfully "internalized the externality" of biodiversity use at a digital level. For the private sector, it offers a path toward corporate social responsibility and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) compliance that is grounded in a clear international legal framework.
However, the practical implementation issues mentioned by the ICC remain formidable. Determining which products are "derived" from DSI is a complex technical challenge. Many products use thousands of different sequences; identifying which ones triggered a payment obligation requires sophisticated tracking or a simplified "sector-wide" approach. The ICC’s call for a "workable" mechanism suggests a preference for the latter—a simplified system where companies in certain sectors contribute based on overall revenue, rather than trying to track every individual sequence.
Conclusion and Future Outlook
As the international community moves closer to the finalization of the Cali Fund, the role of the International Chamber of Commerce will be pivotal. Its commitment to working with the "Friends of the Cali Fund" and other parties indicates a shift from defensive advocacy to constructive partnership. The coming months will require intense technical work to resolve the remaining conceptual and governance issues.
The success of the multilateral benefit-sharing mechanism will ultimately be judged by two metrics: its ability to provide a meaningful, multi-billion-dollar stream of funding for the protection of the Earth’s disappearing species, and its ability to do so without slowing the pace of the biotechnological innovations that are necessary to feed, heal, and power a growing global population. The ICC’s latest intervention makes it clear that business is ready to take its seat at the table, provided the seat comes with a clear view of the legal and economic road ahead.
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