Sharing the benefits of nature’s genetic data
The Cali Fund enables companies benefiting from nature’s genetic data to share part of those benefits back to nature and its custodians, contributing to biodiversity conservation in developing countries and supporting indigenous peoples and local communities worldwide.
The Cali Fund is the financial arm of the Multilateral Mechanism for the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits from the Use of Digital Sequence Information on Genetic Resources (DSI) established under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
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New to the Cali Fund?
Learn more about:
- The origin and purpose of the Cali Fund
- Digital sequence information on genetic resources (DSI)
- Why the Cali Fund exists
- How it works
Common questions
Quick answers to frequently asked questions, such as:
- What progress has been made?
- What’s on the agenda for discussion at COP17?
- DSI has always been freely available. Why should companies pay now?
- How does contributing fit with companies’ existing biodiversity commitments?
- Will funds reach indigenous peoples and local communities?
- How can companies contribute?
Stay connected
- Sign up for the newsletter
- Follow the Cali Fund on LinkedIn
- Get in touch
Overview
About the Cali Fund
Companies around the world benefit commercially from nature’s genetic data. The Cali Fund is the global instrument through which they share those benefits fairly and contribute to biodiversity conservation.
Agreed by 196 governments at COP15 in 2022 and operationalized at COP16 in 2024, the Cali Fund launched in February 2025. Unlike biodiversity funds that depend on government donors, it is designed to be resourced by companies that benefit commercially from digital sequence information on genetic resources (DSI).
About DSI
DSI is often described as a digital representation of the genetic material of plants, animals and other lifeforms. Parties have not agreed a formal definition; what matters in practice is the scope set out in Decision 16/2.
Scope of DSI under the Multilateral Mechanism
The Mechanism covers nature’s genetic data that is publicly available. It does not apply where benefit-sharing is already covered by terms set when the original material was collected, or by another international agreement.
What DSI makes possible
Genetic material from plants and animals has long produced valuable products. The Madagascar periwinkle gave us vincristine, a leukaemia drug still in use today. That work once required collecting physical samples. Now much of it happens digitally: scientists identified genes that protect wheat from stem rust by comparing DNA data rather than through years of crossbreeding.
Why the Cali Fund exists
Custodians and rights-holders
Indigenous peoples and local communities are at the forefront of nature conservation. Their traditional knowledge has been essential to protecting the biodiversity now held in DSI databases. This is why Decision 16/2 directs at least half of the funds to indigenous peoples and local communities for their self-identified needs.
The need for a multilateral approach
Today, research often starts with DSI. Millions of sequences sit in global databases, used by researchers and companies everywhere at once. The Multilateral Mechanism was negotiated to address this need.
How it works
How contributions work
Large companies in specific commercial sectors are expected to contribute. These include pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, animal breeding, biotechnology, lab equipment for DSI applications and AI-driven services, among others. Public databases, academic institutions and public research organizations are exempt. Rates, company thresholds, and additional modalities for contribution are on the agenda for discussion at COP17.
Disbursement of funds
Non-monetary benefit-sharing
All users of DSI, commercial and non-commercial, are expected to share non-monetary benefits, such as data access, capacity building and technology transfer that support the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. The specific modalities for non-monetary benefit-sharing are still under development.
Governance of the Cali Fund
The Cali Fund is led by a Steering Committee. It includes 15 members from Parties, seven seats for indigenous peoples and local communities (one per sociocultural region, six currently filled), and two from UN entities, alongside six observers from civil society, scientific institutions and the private sector.
Common questions
What progress has been made?
The Cali Fund launched in February 2025. Since then the Steering Committee has met four times, adopting its rules of procedure, developing a methodology for reviewing the Mechanism’s effectiveness, and advancing work on the Fund’s governance and operations. At its fourth meeting it agreed the report and advice it will provide to Parties at COP17. A separate expert group has developed recommendations on the allocation methodology, also going to COP17.
As of October 2026, two companies have contributed a total of $6,000. Contributions are published by the Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office.
What’s on the agenda for discussion at COP17?
From 19 to 30 October, Parties meeting in Yerevan will consider several of the remaining pieces that shape how the Fund operates, including the allocation methodology, contribution rates and thresholds, the report and advice of the Steering Committee, the methodology for reviewing the Mechanism’s effectiveness, and additional topics relating to the modalities of the Multilateral Mechanism.
DSI has always been freely available. Why should companies pay now?
The Multilateral Mechanism does not restrict access to DSI. It addresses a separate question: fair sharing of the benefits that come from using DSI commercially. Access to public databases remains open and free. What changed is that Parties recognised, through Decision 16/2, that companies benefiting commercially from that data are expected to share benefits with the countries and communities that make it possible.
How does contributing fit with companies’ existing biodiversity commitments?
The Multilateral Mechanism applies only to DSI not already covered by other benefit-sharing arrangements, so contributing does not duplicate obligations elsewhere. Its longer-term aim is to offer companies one agreed route for DSI benefit-sharing rather than a growing set of separate national approaches. How the Mechanism interacts with national laws and other international regimes is still being worked out, and Parties will take this forward at COP17. Contributions are recorded and published, giving companies a documented action they can report.
Will funds reach indigenous peoples and local communities?
At least 50% of contributions are designated for indigenous peoples and local communities, for their self-identified needs. At its fourth meeting, the Steering Committee agreed a proposal on delivery pathways for these direct allocations, developed by its members representing sociocultural regions, which goes to COP17 for approval. The Fund is hosted by the UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office, which publishes contributions and financial reporting, and the Steering Committee is responsible for overseeing disbursement.
How can companies contribute?
- Visit the Cali Fund page at the UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office: https://mptf.undp.org/fund/cal00
- Download and complete the contribution forms.
- Return them to the email address on the page.
Stay connected
Sign up for the newsletter
Follow the Cali Fund on LinkedIn
For news and updates on the Cali Fund, follow the Cali Fund on LinkedIn
Get in touch
For questions about the Cali Fund, send an email to: