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South African National Biodiversity Institute and UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre launch Mapping Biodiversity Priorities guide at CoP16 with the support of groupe AFD

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The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), in collaboration with the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), launched the second edition of the Mapping Biodiversity Priorities guide at the 16th Conference of the Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD CoP16) in Cali, Colombia on Monday 28 October 2024. The event and guide were supported by several organisations from Namibia, Mozambique, Malawi and France.

As the world comes together at CoP16 to advance the work of the CBD and implement the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), this guide arrives at a crucial time for biodiversity conservation. The GBF’s 23 global targets for urgent action by 2030 will enable achievement towards the outcome-oriented goals for 2050. 

Speaking at the launch, South African Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Honourable Mr Narend Singh said, “This guide is an transformative resource for any country implementing and monitoring the GBF, as it provides practical, updated methodologies to help countries integrate biodiversity into national prioritisation and planning processes.”

First published in 2016, the guide, titled Mapping biodiversity priorities: A practical approach to spatial biodiversity assessment and prioritisation to inform national policy, planning, decisions and action, is recognised as a comprehensive resource for governments, researchers, and conservationists worldwide. 

Presenting the updated guide, SANBI Chief Executive Mr Shonisani Munzhedzi said, “Mapping answers the question of what biodiversity a country has and where it is located. Assessment reveals what state this biodiversity is in, using the indicators of risk status (Red Lists) and protection level. Prioritisation and planning then identifies the most important areas that should be the focus of conservation action. This sequential approach presented in this guide results in the exact information needed to compile several of the headline indicators of the GBF.”

The approach is currenting being applied in a project involving South Africa, Namibia, Mozambique and Malawi, and exhibits SANBI’s role as a technical and scientific subregional support centre for the CBD. 

Ms Tunehafo Gottlieb, from the Namibian Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism, explained how Namibia is currently developing a national map of terrestrial ecosystem types and undertaking red listing of important species. These processes will assist Namibia to identify a network of Key Biodiversity Areas for the country, which will be used for global reporting and national planning.

Dr Tiwonge Gawa, speaking on behalf of the Malawi University of Science and Technology and the Malawian Environmental Affairs Department said, “This Mapping Biodiversity Priorities approach has been applied in Malawi since 2018 and has enabled us to map and red list our terrestrial ecosystems. The process has enabled Malawi to mainstream biodiversity into its environmental policy and  planning process through incorporation of the MBP products into ESIA Guidelines. We are now working on mapping Lake Malawi, which will enable the assessment of freshwater ecosystem types - which is a crucial next step to ensure the complete coverage of the country.”

Dr Hermenegildo Matimele, speaking on behalf of the Wildlife Conservation Society of Mozambique and the National Directorate of Environment from the Ministry of Land and Environment, noted how the approach outlined in the guide has enabled Mozambique to advance  its work at national level. He said, “This sequential process of biodiversity assessment, prioritisation and planning highlighted in the guide is very achievable because it is based on only a few foundational spatial datasets. In Mozambique, we are using the outputs of the process to inform biodiversity-inclusive spatial planning and undertake protected area expansion negotiations.”

Representing both Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the Fonds Français pour l’Environnement Mondial (FFEM – French Facility for Global Environment), who jointly fund the four-country project, Ms Hélène Djoufelkit (Deputy Executive Director of Sustainable Development Solutions at  AFD ) noted how this investment in Southern Africa shows the commitment of financial institutions to development that is in harmony with nature. Mr Cyrille Barnerias, Director of European and International Relations at the Office Français de la Biodiversité (OFB - French Biodiversity Agency) spoke of how proud France is to be associated with this important product and the Southern African region, and of the fruitful south-south and south-north engagements happening between all five countries. 

In wrapping up the event, speakers from both the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (Prof Emily Nicholson representing the Commission on Ecosystem Management) and the Secretariat of the CBD (Ms Jillian Campbell; Head of Monitoring, Review and Reporting) welcomed the guide. Ms Campbell said, “We would like to encourage other regions and donors to consider how to scale up the approach described in Mapping Biodiversity Priorities and  implemented in the SBAPP Regional Project to other countries and regions. Southern Africa is an excellent example of how cooperation and capacity building can support the global vision of a world living in harmony with nature by 2050.” 

Additional information:

1. About the guide

Full title: Mapping biodiversity priorities: A practical approach to spatial biodiversity assessment and prioritisation to inform national policy, planning, decisions and action

The second edition is available for download at: https://www.sanbi.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/2024-Mapping-Biodiversity-Priorities.pdf  

Spatial data and mapping offer valuable benefits for biodiversity policy, planning, and decision-making at a national level. The ‘Mapping Biodiversity Priorities’ guide outlines a practical approach to spatial biodiversity assessment and prioritisation, demonstrating how a few foundational datasets can produce  key biodiversity indicators and maps identifying priority areas. These products are versatile, supporting everything from biodiversity mainstreaming to global reporting. 

This guide supports countries for a number of the goals, targets and indicators under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, including those relating to biodiversity-inclusive spatial planning (Target 1) and protected area expansion (Target 3), as well as restoration (Target 2), halting species extinction (Target 4), sustainable use (Target 5), mainstreaming biodiversity into other sectors (Target 14), business risks and impacts (Target 15), and accessibility of best available information for decisions (Target 21).

2. Key features of the 2024 second edition:

  • Updated standards and guidelines: the latest IUCN standards and guidelines are featured, including the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology, IUCN Red List of Ecosystems, IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and the identification of Key Biodiversity Areas.
  • Relevance to the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF): the assessment and prioritisation approach in this guide results in the exact information needed to measure several of the indicators, making it a valuable tool for national monitoring and reporting.
  • Capacity building: the guide is a key capacity-building resource, supporting countries to meet GBF Target 20 on knowledge transfer and technical capacity.
  • Case studies: the book includes detailed case studies, showcasing practical examples of biodiversity assessment and prioritisation in action.

3.  About the donors and projects showcased at the side event:

4. Side Event Details:

  • Title: Practical Experience of Mapping Biodiversity Priorities to Support National Implementation and Monitoring of the GBF
  • Date and Time: Monday, 28 October 2024, 10:10 – 11:30 (Colombia time)
  • https://www.cbd.int/side-events/5699 

5. Contact details:

6. Images for use by journalists:

o    Front cover of the guide

o    Photo of high-level officials at the launch with the Guide