The Environmental Protect-ion Agency (EPA) on Thursday handed over the recently completed National Biodiversity Action Plan 11 (NBAP 11) to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), which funded the preparation of the document.
Following this, the document, which was approved by Cabinet in August last year, will be distributed to other stakeholders. WWF contributed $9.7M to the preparation of the document.
In a statement the conservation organization noted that Guyana is a signatory to the United Nations convention on Biological Biodiversity. “The preparation of NBAP 11 signifies our country’s commitment to the implementation of the guidelines as outlined in the articles of the convention including the resources stipulated for the conservation and sustainable use of our biological resources,” it said.
The overall goal of the NBAP 11 is to promote and achieve the conservation of Guyana’s biodiversity, to use its components in a sustainable way and to encourage the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the use of Guyana’s biodiversity. It is a continuation to the first NBAP and will focus on four thematic areas namely Marine and Inland Waters Bio-diversity, Agricultural Biodiversity, Forest Biodiversity and Coastal Biodiversity.
Speaking at the ceremony, WWF-Guianas Regional Goldmining Pollution Abatement Coordinator, Rickford Vieira, noted that inappropriate resource use is one of the biggest threats facing biodiversity.
Director of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Natural Resources Management Division, Dr Indarjit Ramdass, who handed over the document, said that at the moment, concepts are being worked upon to send for donor funding. On the front of the document it said 2007 – 2011 and it was stated that some initiatives have started.
It was stated that for the last NBAP, a review found that 93% of the projects were completed, some were ongoing and about two did not receive funding. WWF said that the successful implementation of the NBAP 11 will depend on the level of financial support and provision of resources and a country-driven process that will be accepted by all stakeholders with their active participation.
