UN chief Antonio Guterres called for a "movement from words to action" because the planet "is not on the right track."

The COP16 summit, hosted by the Colombian city of Cali, kicked off this Sunday, the 20th, with calls for nations to move from words to actions to restore and save biodiversity and make peace with nature.

In a video screened at the opening ceremony of COP16 on Biodiversity, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres urged the world's governments to move from words to actions because the planet is not on the right track in the management and conservation of biodiversity.

"The Global Biodiversity Framework promises to restore our relationship with the Earth and its ecosystems, but we are not on the right track. Our task at this COP is to move from words to action," Guterres said.

He stressed that for humanity to prosper, nature must flourish as "destroying nature fuels conflict, anger and disease, fuels poverty, inequality and the climate crisis, and undermines sustainable development, green jobs, cultural heritage and GDP."

In this regard, he said that a collapse of nature's services, such as pollination and clean water, "would mean a loss of billions of dollars a year for the global economy, with the poorest being the most affected."

CALI ON HIGH ALERT

The event, which officially begins on Monday, had a ceremonial start with Cali on high alert due to guerrilla threats in that area of southwestern Colombia.

Some 12,000 delegates from nearly 200 countries, including a dozen heads of state and 140 ministers, are expected at the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP16) to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), which runs until 1 November.

Under the motto "Peace with Nature", the summit has the urgent task of devising monitoring and financing mechanisms to ensure compliance with the objectives set by the UN.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro, meanwhile, called those who "deny that the extinction of biodiversity and life has begun" "deluded" when opening the summit, where he also argued that "it is essential to exchange debt for climate action."

"Those who think in world forums like this that the free market will lead to the maximization of well-being and that it will lead human beings to be bearers of life are deluded," Petro added, and predicted that "perhaps the greatest battle is about to begin (...) it is the great battle of life."

"The only reason for humanity's existence is life itself, to protect life and not destroy it," the president added.