Conservation Areas and Species

The CAS programme draws on evidence-based and best practice approaches to enhance the conservation and management of biodiversity and ecosystems in Eastern and Southern Africa. CAS operates through a “One Programme” approach working closely with IUCN members and Commissions to engage in a diverse set of biodiversity conservation actions ranging from the implementation of field projects to influencing policy and institutional frameworks at local, national, regional and global levels. The CAS programme is focused on enhancing management effectiveness, governance and equity of protected and conserved areas, strengthening multi-sectoral and multi-stakeholder engagement to improve biodiversity conservation at landscape and seascape level, and supporting effective local community engagement in biodiversity conservation. The thematic programme also contributes to building the capacity of IUCN Members and partners, as well as the ESARO Secretariat to tackle new and emerging biodiversity conservation challenges in the region and to implement relevant international conventions such as the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)  , Convention on Illegal Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)  and the UNESCO World Heritage Convention. The programme also links closely to relevant work and regional priorities of Regional Economic Communities, the African Union and the United Nations Environment Assembly .

Existing projects in the CAS portfolio include:

1. BIOPAMA

Photo: BIOPAMA

The Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management Programme (BIOPAMA) aims to improve the long-term conservation and sustainable use of natural resources in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, in protected and conserved areas and surrounding communities. It is an initiative of the Organisation of African Caribbean and Pacific States financed by the European Union’s 11th European Development Fund (EDF), jointly implemented by IUCN and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC). BIOPAMA aims at reinforcing the management and governance of protected and conserved areas across Eastern and Southern Africa. By providing unique and tailored support to protected area authorities at the local, national and regional level, BIOPAMA supports conservation actors in achieving their conservation objectives and reporting more accurately their progress on relevant multilateral environmental agreements. BIOPAMA is focused on delivering tools and services for evidence-based biodiversity conservation and protected area management and provides specialised expertise in geospatial information systems and remote sensing through a Regional Observatory for Biodiversity and Protected Areas. BIOPAMA also has a grant-making mechanism to support site-based conservation actions on the ground, aimed at addressing priorities identified through the evidence-based approaches outlined above.

See more details here.

2.   Local Communities – First Line of Defence against Illegal Wildlife Trade (FLoD)

Photo: IUCN / Akshay Vishwanath

Engaging communities as partners in combatting illegal wildlife trade (IWT) is increasingly recognized as critical, but has proven difficult to operationalise in a meaningful and sustainable manner. While there is increasing recognition among practitioners and policy makers of the need to engage rural communities that neighbour or live with wildlife as key partners in tackling IWT, a clear framework to guide, monitor, and assess such action has been lacking. With some exceptions, the role of rural communities in combatting escalating IWT in high-value species and the conditions under which community engagement does and does not work have received little attention. This has hampered efforts to effectively partner with communities in the fight against wildlife crime.

The FLoD initiative takes advantage of an iterative learning process to help local communities, project designers and implementers at site and landscape levels to understand the context-specific motivations and assumptions that underpin the activities (legal and illegal) of local communities. Lessons learned and theories of change are documented and serve as guidance for policy-makers, practitioners and donors to improve anti-IWT interventions. . The Local Communities – First Line of Defence against Illegal Wildlife Trade (FLoD) initiative is a formal partnership between the IUCN ESARO, the IUCN CEESP/SSC Sustainable Use and Livelihoods Specialist Group (SuLi) and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). FLoD is currently supported by the United States Department of the Interior International Technical Assistance Program.

See more details here.

3. SADC TFCA Financing Facility 

Photo: TFCA Network Established in April 2020, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Transfrontier Conservation Areas Financing Facility (TFCA FF) is a funding mechanism which aims to provide fast responses to emerging needs of TFCAs in the SADC region. IUCN Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office is the Project Executing Agency, responsible for administering the TFCA FF grants. Projects funded by the TFCA FF are selected through an open Call for Proposals

The TFCA FF is designed to contribute to the goals of the SADC TFCA Programme (2013); SADC Regional Policies and Protocols (e.g. the SADC Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP), Protocol on Wildlife Conservation and Law Enforcement, Protocol on Tourism, Protocol on Forestry and Protocol on Shared Water Courses; and support attainment of the goals of Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, as well as meeting the targets of several Multilateral Environmental Agreements (such as Convention on Biodiversity (CBD), Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) etc.

The TFCA FF provides grants to selected projects in all SADC TFCAs contributing to measurable outcomes, including:

• Conservation of biodiversity and recovery of flagship species;
• Newly established or better managed protected areas or networks of conservation areas of regional importance
• Improved livelihoods for communities living in TFCAs

See more details here

4. CONNECT

Photo: © Swaib Okita Conserving Natural Capital and Enhancing Collaborative Management of Transboundary Resources in East Africa (CONNECT) is a project which aims to strengthen the conservation and management of natural resources shared by East African countries including wildlife and landscapes popularly referred to as transboundary natural resources.

The project seeks to strengthen East African Community (EAC’s) institutional leadership to deliver on its regional mandate and commitments to conserve and manage shared environment and natural resources in East Africa. By strengthening existing regional conservation initiatives through generating evidence-based information, innovative methodologies, tools, and best practices, EAC Partner States and their citizens will reap the benefits of their natural resources. 

See more details here

5. SOS African Wildlife Initiative

Photo: IUCN The IUCN Save Our Species Programme is a grant making mechanism that is set up to ensure the long-term survival of threatened species, their habitats and the people who depend on them.

The IUCN Save Our Species Programme supports science based conservation action and is informed by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™  with  efforts focused on species most in need: those assessed as Vulnerable, Endangered and Critically Endangered. We work with the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC) to develop and select projects in line with globally agreed conservation strategies.

The Programme channels funds from donors to existing frontline conservation actors across the world who have unique knowledge of their region and the local biodiversity. We give grants to Civil Society Organisations working to ensure long-term survival of some of the world’s most threatened species of plants and animals.

The Save Our Species African Wildlife initiative is a partnership between the European Union and IUCN to respond to conservation challenges facing key threatened species in sub-Saharan Africa.

This initiative aims primarily to halt the decline of the Vulnerable species of Lion (Panthera leo), Leopard (Panthera pardus), Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) as well as the Endangered species of African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus) and Ethiopian Wolf (Canis simensis), increasingly threatened by poaching, habitat fragmentation and human encroachment on wild habitats.

The initiative also contributes to ensuring the long-term survival of smaller carnivores and prey species, including the Critically Endangered African Wild Ass (Equus africanus), the Endangered Grevy’s Zebra (Equus grevyi), and various antelope species.  SOS African Wildlife will enable coordinated conservation work across the species’ natural habitats.

Actions funded through SOS African Wildlife include those that address and reduce human-wildlife conflict, poaching of carnivores and their prey, wildlife trafficking, as well as those focussed on enhancing law enforcement and implementing actions that empower communities to participate in conservation as part of innovative livelihood solutions. 

See more details here

6. IUCN Green List of Protected and Conserved Areas

Photo: IUCN The IUCN Green List is a global campaign for successful nature conservation. At its heart is the Green List Standard that provides a global benchmark for how to meet the environmental challenges of the 21^st century. The IUCN Green List offers locally relevant expert guidance to help achieve fair and effective nature conservation results in protected and conserved areas.

To date three sites in Kenya have achieved Green List status. Zambia and Madagascar have established Expert Assessment Groups for the Green List (EAGL) and will soon begin assessing sites. Namibia, Mozambique and the Western Indian Ocean region, respectively, are in the process of forming EAGLs. This work is implemented through three key projects:

The trilateral cooperation project, entitled Fair and effective protected area management for sustainable development – working together towards global standards, aims to improve the quality of African protected area governance and management as a contribution to sustainable development through the implementation of the IUCN Green List of Protected and Conserved Areas. Cooperation involves Germany, China and two African countries (Zambia and Namibia), and IUCN as the lead implementation partner.

The Protected Area Solutions: Achieving continued impact from the IUCN Green List during COVID-19 pandemic aims to enhance capacity for diverse and equitable governance of protected area (PA) systems that deliver biodiversity and climate change outcomes. The extension of this project aims to assess the impacts of COVID-19 on the management and governance effectiveness of PAs.

The TECH4NATURE project, entitled Digital support for IUCN Green List assurance, aims to support improved use of technology in IUCN Green List evaluation and assurance, particularly for Marine Protected Areas and Locally Managed Marine Areas. 

See more details here