Mainstreaming biodiversity, poverty reduction and development

The 11^th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 11) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) took place in Hyderabad in October 2012.

IIED, the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) and the CBD Secretariat hosted a side event to highlight recent work on biodiversity mainstreaming.

The event started with a presentation by Natasha McQuaid of CBD Secretariat, reporting on a survey on mainstreaming that had been conducted among members of the CBD Expert Group on Biodiversity and Poverty Eradication.

Jessica Smith from UNEP-WCMC presented an overview of the project 'NBSAPS 2.0 Mainstreaming biodiversity and development'. This was followed by presentations from project partner countries Botswana, Namibia, The Seychelles and Uganda. Their presentations reported on the first results of using the Biodiversity Mainstreaming Diagnostic Tool – one of the first outputs of the NBSAPs 2.0 project.

The countries reported that the diagnostic tool valuable in strengthening their mainstreaming strategies. The tool is available in français, Español, and Arabic and will be disseminated through the NBSAP Forum, a complementary UNEP-supported initiative.

All the country presentations highlighted the need for good coordination between ministries – so that biodiversity is not just addressed by the ministry of environment (or equivalent) but also within finance, planning and even labour. They also highlighted the need for good evidence on the value of biodiversity if they are to lobby successfully for adequate budget allocations.