THE THEMATIC ASSESSMENT REPORT ON INVASIVE ALIEN SPECIES AND THEIR CONTROL
5 STATEMENTS FROM KEY PARTNERS
Invasive alien species - plants, animals or 
microorganisms that are introduced intentionally or 
unintentionally into areas where they are not native 
- remain one of the most striking symptoms of the adverse 
effect of human activities on our natural world. They not only 
contribute to wildlife species extinctions, but also pose a 
rapidly growing risk to progress on the Global Goals - 
affecting entire ecosystems, economies and food security to 
human health, wellbeing, and livelihoods.
As anthropogenic factors such as climate change provide the 
perfect petri dish for alien species to multiply and spread, our 
decisions and actions must be rooted in a comprehensive 
understanding of this threat and its future implications.
Addressing this need, this timely analysis by IPBES combines 
the latest science, data, and new thinking to guide countries, 
communities, and the United Nations family to prevent, 
mitigate, and manage invasive alien species, a pivotal step 
towards advancing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity 
Framework targets. That includes leveraging invaluable local 
knowledge and outlining a range of practical solutions.
This new understanding will allow our global community to 
take new measures to protect both people and planet from 
the unwanted and severe consequences of invasive 
alien species.
Achim Steiner 
Administrator, 
United Nations Development Programme 
(UNDP)
Invasive alien species are one of the five main direct 
drivers of biodiversity loss globally and the threats 
they pose to species, to ecosystems and to human 
well-being are rapidly increasing.
The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, in its 
Target 6, aims to tackle the impacts of invasive alien species 
on biodiversity and ecosystem services, and to reduce 
the rate of introduction and establishment of invasive alien 
species by at least 50% by 2030. This is an ambitious target, 
especially when we consider the increasing levels of global 
trade and travel.
The IPBES Assessment will provide the best available 
scientific knowledge to help countries and stakeholders 
understand and address this growing threat. It will identify 
tools and policy measures for identifying and regulating 
pathways of introduction and for eliminating or controlling 
invasive species that have already been established. Critically, 
the assessment will take into account different value systems 
and help to focus actions on priority species, pathways 
and sites.
Congratulations to IPBES for this critical work. I look forward 
to seeing its active use by Parties and stakeholders. I believe 
it will be a critical resource to facilitate the urgent actions 
necessary to achieve Target 6 and work towards living in 
harmony with nature.
David Cooper
Acting Executive Secretary
Convention on Biological Diversity 
(CBD)
STATEMENTS FROM KEY PARTNERS
The thematic assessment report on
INVASIVE ALIEN SPECIES
AND THEIR CONTROL
QU DongyuQU Dongyu
