| United Nations | E/CN.17/1995/7 |
Economic and Social Council
Distr. GENERAL
7 February 1995
ORIGINAL: ENGLISH
COMMISSION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Third session
11-28 April 1995
REVIEW OF SECTORAL CLUSTERS, SECOND PHASE: LAND, DESERTIFICATION,
FORESTS AND BIODIVERSITY
Conservation of biological diversity
Report of the Secretary-General
CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
INTRODUCTION ............................................... 1 - 3 3
I. GENERAL OVERVIEW ..................................... 4 - 30 4
A. Biodiversity and sustainable development ......... 4 - 8 4
B. The loss of a valuable asset ..................... 9 - 24 5
C. The United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development: a new challenge to conservation and
the sustainable use of biodiversity .............. 25 - 30 9
II. REVIEW OF PROGRESS ACHIEVED: MAIN POLICY ISSUES AND
EXPERIENCES .......................................... 31 - 84 10
A. Experiences of major groups and non-governmental
organizations .................................... 33 - 56 11
1. Indigenous and rural communities ............. 33 - 38 11
2. Women ........................................ 39 - 46 12
3. Non-governmental organizations ............... 47 - 56 13
B. Matters related to finance and technology ........ 57 - 66 15
C. Recent developments and experiences in
international cooperation ........................ 67 - 84 18
1. Intergovernmental processes .................. 67 - 83 18
2. United Nations system ........................ 84 23
III. CONCLUSIONS AND PROPOSALS FOR ACTION ................. 85 - 104 23
A. Conclusions ...................................... 85 - 89 23
B. Proposals for action ............................. 90 - 104 24
1. Cooperation programmes and collaborative
arrangements ................................. 91 - 95 24
2. Information exchange and networking .......... 96 25
3. Education, science, human resources
development, technology transfer and
capacity-building ............................ 97 - 98 25
4. Policy reforms ............................... 99 - 100 25
5. Additional proposals for action .............. 101 - 104 26
Annex. United Nations system activities in support of chapter 15 of
Agenda 21 and the Convention on Biological Diversity ........... 28
INTRODUCTION
1. The present report reviews progress in the implementation of the aims
set out in chapter 15 of Agenda 21 1/ (Conservation of biological diversity)
since the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) and
presents a set of recommendations for action. The report was prepared by the
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as task manager for chapter 15 in
Agenda 21, in consultation with the United Nations Secretariat, in accordance
with arrangements agreed on by the Inter-Agency Committee on Sustainable
Development at its fourth session. It reviews the progress achieved since
UNCED and highlights the major biodiversity issues that it is considered would
benefit from the further considerations, support and guidance of the
Commission on Sustainable Development.
2. The conservation of biological diversity, which is addressed principally
in chapter 15 of Agenda 21 but also in several other associated chapters, will
be considered by the Commission within the cluster "Land, desertification,
forests and biodiversity" at the current session. The objectives of chapter
15 are aimed at the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use
of biological and genetic resources, the fair and equitable sharing of the
benefits arising from the use of those resources, and the implementation of
the Convention on Biological Diversity, 2/ the objectives of which they
specifically reflect. Many of the issues covered in chapter 15 are addressed
in other chapters of Agenda 21, as well as in the Convention on Biological
Diversity and other international instruments, such as the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), 3/
the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS),
4/ the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as
Waterfowl Habitat (RAMSAR), 5/ the United Nations Convention to Combat
Desertification in those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and for
Desertification, particularly in Africa (A/49/84/Add.2, annex, appendix II),
and the regional seas programmes.
3. In the preparation of the present report, valuable contributions were
received from a wide range of United Nations agencies and bodies, including
the Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development of the
United Nations Secretariat, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the
United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD), the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the
International Labour Office (ILO), the International Fund for Agricultural
Development (IFAD), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the
International Maritime Organization (IMO), the United Nations Population Fund
(UNFPA), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU), the World Bank, the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP); the regional commissions; regional intergovernmental
organizations; and many non-governmental organizations, including The World
Conservation Union (IUCN), the World Resources Institute (WRI), the
Environmental Liaison Centre International (ELCI), the Consultative Group on
International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), the African Centre for Technology
Studies (ACTS), the Environmental Defense Fund, Greenpeace, the Third World
Network, Birdlife International, and the German Non-Governmental Organizations
Forum.
I. GENERAL OVERVIEW
A. Biodiversity and sustainable development
4. Biological diversity - biodiversity for short - refers to the variety
and variability of all plants, animals and micro-organisms that exist on earth
and the ecological complexes of which they are part as well as the way in
which they interact with one another and with their physical surroundings,
including ecosystems diversity, species diversity and genetic diversity. In
short, biological diversity is the variety of all life and natural processes.
Biodiversity is a key provided by nature for opening up sustainable
development opportunities. The biological resources of genes, species and
ecosystems are essentially renewable resources; if managed effectively, they
can create the basis for sustainable development. Conservation of
biodiversity is therefore critical for the very survival of humankind. It
lies at the heart of the key sustainable development issues, such as food
security, human health and sustainable livelihoods. High agricultural and
forest productivity and sustainability depend on the vital activities and the
genetic diversity of diverse biota composed of an estimated 10 million (range
5-100 million) species of plants, animals and micro-organisms. Wild and
domesticated components of biodiversity enable us to meet many of our daily
needs for food, shelter, medicines and industrial products. Such basic
commodities as wool, leather, cotton, silk, timber, rattan, resins, gums,
rubber, meat, potatoes, maize, rice, wheat, bananas, medicinal plants, cocoa,
tea and coffee are just a few typical components of biodiversity that are too
often taken for granted. Without these raw materials, it would be impossible
to sustain such human livelihoods as agriculture, forestry and fisheries, and
improvements in pharmaceutical products and health care would be seriously
hampered.
5. The underlying motivation for conserving biological diversity and using
its components sustainably is thus deeply rooted in concern for the well-being
and sustainable development of people. Biodiversity should be perceived not
only in terms of conservation and science but also in terms of economics and
resources, as a sustainable development issue. Consequently, actions geared
to conserving biodiversity must be fully integrated both into overall national
plans for sustainable development and into related sectoral plans (e.g.,
agriculture, forestry, marine, rural development and land use plans).
6. The conservation of biological diversity and the sustainable use of
biological resources cut across a wide spectrum of the issues addressed in
Agenda 21, including important economic and other human activity, such as
promoting sustainable agricultural production and rural development
(chap. 14); managing fragile ecosystems (chap. 13); protection of the oceans
and the marine environment and the management and sustainable development of
coastal areas (chap. 17); protection of freshwater resources (chap. 18);
combating deforestation and desertification (chaps. 11 and 12); combating
poverty (chap. 3); environmentally sound management of biotechnology
(chap. 16); the role of indigenous people and their communities (chap. 26);
and changing consumption patterns (chap. 4). Consideration of the issues
contained in these chapters can be productive only if biodiversity concerns
are taken into account.
7. Chapter 15 of Agenda 21 also cuts across macroeconomic policy issues,
such as external indebtedness and the net transfer of resources (chap. 33),
which support wasteful consumption patterns (chap. 33), as well as demographic
dynamics (chap. 5) and trade and the environment (chap. 2). Activities under
chapter 15 and related chapters of Agenda 21, together with measures contained
in the Convention on Biological Diversity and other relevant legal instruments
and agreements, thus need to be integrated into political, social and economic
policy-making at every level. This was envisaged in paragraph 15.5 (b) of
Agenda 21 (on the development of national strategies) and further elaborated
in chapter 8 (Integrating environment and development in decision-making).
The priority needs of developing countries for sustainable economic growth and
the eradication of poverty need to be taken fully into account. As users of
biological resources, people - especially indigenous people and local
communities - need to be recognized as the front-line managers of
biodiversity.
8. Given the critical importance of biological and genetic resources for
the attainment of sustainable development and for the well-being of humankind,
it is worth recalling that the steady erosion of biodiversity is largely the
result of human activity. Despite mounting efforts over the past two decades
to halt or even reverse this trend, the loss of the world's biodiversity has
continued unabated. If a determined and concerted effort is not undertaken
immediately to implement the commitments entered into at the United Nations
Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in a coordinated and
coherent manner, not only will the loss of species continue (currently
estimated at between 20,000 and 50,000 species per year), but activities in
the key socio-economic sectors mentioned above could be seriously undermined
by the deterioration or permanent loss of their raw materials.
B. The loss of a valuable asset
9. The value of maintaining biodiversity for sustainable development is
gradually being realized, and steps are being taken to conserve habitats,
species and genetic resources. The increasing attention this issue has
received has also served to underline how little is known about the scope and
value of biodiversity on Earth. The lack of knowledge falls into two major
areas. In the first place, neither the total number of living species that
exist today, nor the number of those that have disappeared during the past few
centuries is known. For all the positive good that biodiversity promises for
improving the lives of human beings, scientists are not yet in a position to
estimate the number of species or organisms on the Earth to an order of
magnitude. There is a wide variation among estimates of the total number of
species in the world. To date, while only 1.7 million species of plants,
animals and micro-organisms have been described world wide, estimates of the
total number of species on Earth range from 5 to 100 million or even more, 10
million being a conservative estimate. It is estimated that extinction is
currently proceeding at the rate of 30 to 300 species per day, although that
is only a crude conjectural assessment; there are few areas of science of such
direct relevance to human beings about which so little is known. Agenda 21
made a contribution to redressing this gap in scientific knowledge by calling
for the production of regularly updated world reports on biodiversity based
upon national assessments in all countries (para. 15.7 (b)). The third
session of the Commission on Sustainable Development should provide a valuable
opportunity to review progress made in this important area. In the second
place, the true value, especially in economic and resource terms, and the full
extent of the current and future potential uses of biodiversity remain
unknown.
10. Mainly because biodiversity comprises many components and because of the
dearth of scientific and other data, it is extremely difficult to determine
the total economic and ecological value of the range of goods and services
that biodiversity provides. For these and other reasons, economic systems and
policies fail to ascribe a value to biodiversity. This constitutes one of the
major causes of biodiversity loss. Assessments of the value of biodiversity
are often based on the value of products derived from agricultural crops,
fisheries and wild species, and the genetic variation within them (i.e., from
biological resources used directly to generate income). For example,
agriculture accounted for 32 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) of
low-income developing countries and 12 per cent of the GDP of middle-income
countries in 1989. Trade in agricultural products amounted to US$ 3 trillion,
while fisheries contributed 100 million tons of food world wide in the same
year.
11. Wild species and the genetic variation within them make contributions to
agriculture, medicine and industry worth many billions of dollars per year.
So-called "consumptive use values" (from resources that are consumed directly
without passing through a market) are often the foundation of community
welfare in rural areas. For example, firewood and dung provide over
90 per cent of the total primary energy needs in Nepal, the Republic of
Tanzania and Malawi, and exceed 80 per cent in many other countries. One
study of four indigenous Amazonian Indian groups found that they used from
half to two thirds of all forest trees as food, construction material, raw
material for other technology, and medicinal and trade goods (virtually all
species were used as firewood or as food for harvested animals). Conventional
measures of economic performance, such as gross national product (GNP), have
tended to ignore this very extensive use when calculating the annual income of
such groups, even though the value of replacing such goods from other sources
would be considerable.
12. In Africa, harvested species help feed rural people, especially the
poorest villagers living in the most remote areas. In Botswana, over 50
species of wild animals provide animal protein exceeding 90 kilograms per
person per year in some areas: over 3 million kilograms of meat are obtained
yearly from springhare (Pedetes capensis) alone. In Ghana, about 75 per cent
of the population depends largely on traditional sources of protein supply,
mainly wildlife, including fish, caterpillars and snails. In Nigeria, game
constitutes about 20 per cent of the mean annual consumption of animal protein
by people in rural areas (including 100,000 tonnes of the two giant rat
species (genus Thrynomys) known as "grasscutters"). In Zaire, 75 per cent of
the animal protein consumed comes from wild sources.
13. The term "productive use value" is assigned to products that are
harvested commercially for exchange in formal markets and is therefore often
the only value of biological resources reflected in national income accounts.
Productive use of such biological products as fuelwood, timber, fish, animal
skins, musk, ivory, medicinal plants, honey, beeswax, fibres, gums, resins,
rattans, construction materials, ornamentals, animals sold as game meat,
fodder, mushrooms, fruits and dyes, can have a major impact on national
economies.
14. Such values can be remarkably high. It has been estimated that
40 per cent of the world market economy is based upon biological products and
processes. Some 4.5 per cent of GDP in the United States of America is
attributable to the harvesting of wild species, estimated to have amounted to
some US$ 87 billion per year between 1976 and 1980. The percentage
contribution of wild species and ecosystems to the economies of developing
countries is usually far greater than it is for industrialized countries.
Timber from wild forests, for example, is the second leading foreign-exchange
earner for Indonesia (after petroleum) and throughout the humid tropics,
Governments have based their economies on the harvest of wild trees: total
exports of wood products from Asia, Africa and South America averaged
US$ 8.1 billion per year between 1981 and 1983.
15. While market prices represented by productive use value can be an
important indicator of value, they are not always an accurate representation
of the true economic value of the resource and do not deal effectively with
the questions of distribution and equity. It is also apparent that consumers
may value resources differently: when they are admiring scenic beauty, they
value tropical forests in a different way from when they are consuming timber
products. The methodology for defining and relating these different
valuations is still being developed.
16. In addition, species without consumptive or productive use may
nevertheless play an important role in ecosystems, supporting species that do
have such uses. In Sabah, Malaysia, for example, recent studies suggest that
high densities of wild birds in commercial Albizia plantations limit the
abundance of caterpillars that would otherwise defoliate the trees: the birds
require natural forest for nesting.
17. All species form part of an ecosystem. Ecosystems in turn provide
services of considerable value to humans. These services are often regarded
as "public goods" that benefit the entire community or the whole world but are
seldom evaluated in economic terms.
18. Moreover, as has been demonstrated in Nepal, while such benefits may be
enjoyed within the country itself, many benefits from conservation are
realized outside the country's borders in forms as diverse as reduced flooding
because of the protection of upland forests, the supply of medicinal plants
and genetic material, or the pleasure given to international tourists. For
these reasons, the costs of conserving biological diversity need to be shared
internationally. The current evidence of the impact of human activities on
natural ecosystems suggests that far greater investments are required in order
to maintain the continued productivity of these ecosystem services.
19. Information is gradually accumulating on the economic benefits derived
from using genetic diversity to improve crop production by conventional
breeding, and on the use of plant-derived drugs.
20. In Asia, by the mid-1970s, improvements using genetics had increased
wheat production by US$ 2 billion and rice production by US$ 1.5 billion per
year, through the incorporation of dwarfism into both crops. A "useless" wild
wheat plant from Turkey was used to ensure disease resistance to commercial
wheat varieties worth US$ 50 million annually to the United Sates of America
alone. One gene from a single Ethiopian barley plant now protects
California's US$ 160 million annual barley crop from yellow dwarf virus.
Major cultivars of crops improved by wild genes have a combined farm sales
import value of US$ 6 billion a year in the United States of America. An
ancient wild relative of corn from Mexico - a perennial that is resistant to
seven major corn diseases and can grow at high elevations in marginal soils -
can be crossed with modern annual corn varieties, with potential savings to
farmers estimated at US$ 4.4 billion annually world wide.
21. Of all the useful plant-derived drugs, only 10 are synthesized in the
laboratory: the rest are still extracted from plants. Traditional medicine
forms the basis of the primary care for about 80 per cent of the 3 billion
inhabitants of the developing countries. The retail value of plant-derived
drugs was estimated at US$ 43 billion in 1985 in the industrialized countries
and it is estimated that markets for herbal drugs in those countries could
reach US$ 47 billion by the year 2000. In 1960, a child suffering from
leukaemia had only one chance in five of survival; today, that child has four
chances in five, due to treatment with drugs containing active substances
discovered in the rosy periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus), a tropical forest
plant originating from Madagascar. Commercial sales of drugs from this plant
now total around US$ 100 million a year world wide. With advances in plant
biotechnology and the availability of new and precise screening tools, current
interest in plants as a source of raw materials for developing new medicinal
products is expanding.
22. Many natural ecosystems provide benefits that are indirect and have
economic value through services rather than products. Most such benefits will
fall into one or another of the following categories: (a) the photosynthetic
fixation of solar energy, which transfers solar energy through green plants
into natural food chains, thereby providing the support system for species
that are harvested; (b) ecosystem functions involving reproduction, such as
pollination, gene flow and cross-fertilization, the maintenance of
environmental forces and species that influence the acquisition of useful
genetic traits in economic species, and the maintenance of evolutionary
processes, leading to constant dynamic tension among competitors in
ecosystems; (c) maintaining water cycles, including recharging groundwater,
protecting watersheds and buffering extreme water conditions, such as flood
and drought; (d) the regulation of climate conditions, both macro-climatic and
micro-climatic, including influences on temperature, precipitation and air
turbulence; (e) the production of soil and the protection of soil from
erosion, including the protection of coastlines from erosion by the sea;
(f) the storage and cycling of essential nutrients, such as carbon, nitrogen
and oxygen, and the maintenance of the oxygen-carbon dioxide balance; (g) the
absorption and breakdown of pollutants, including the decomposition of organic
wastes, pesticides, and air and water pollutants; and (h) the provision of the
recreational/aesthetic, sociocultural, scientific, educational, spiritual and
historical values of natural environments.
23. Biodiversity also has certain sociocultural values: many plants and
animals have sociocultural and religious attributes that bestow a special
status on them. Some plant parts are used as symbols of peace or war or to
attain protective charms, giving them special religious importance.
24. The study of the physical or biological nature of plants and animals has
led to the accumulation of useful, basic, scientific knowledge, which has in
turn laid the foundation for further advancement and to further discoveries.
C. The United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development: a new challenge to conservation
and the sustainable use of biodiversity
25. The objectives and activities contained in chapter 15 of Agenda 21
represent, therefore, a formidable challenge to Governments and relevant
United Nations bodies, major groups and non-governmental organizations, among
others, to improve the conservation of biological diversity and promote the
sustainable use of biological resources, as well as to support the Convention
on Biological Diversity and other relevant agreements in a coordinated and
integrated manner.
26. Prior to UNCED, a number of entities within the United Nations system
and among the non-governmental organizations were directly involved in issues
related to the conservation of biodiversity and the sustainable use of
biological resources; these organizations have cooperated in a series of
related programmes and activities to address the loss of biodiversity. The
work of the United Nations system and the non-governmental organizations was
explicitly recognized by UNCED, which directed that Agenda 21 should take full
account of and build upon the work already being carried out on biodiversity.
27. Most of these programmes and activities have continued since UNCED and
provide inputs to the implementation of chapter 15 and related chapters of
Agenda 21, together with the Convention on Biological Diversity and related
agreements and action plans. The main thrust of the effort called for in
chapter 15 is focused upon activities at the national level, supported, as
appropriate, by entities within the United Nations system and other bodies.
Thus, within the United Nations system, much work has been undertaken to
assist countries, especially developing countries, with the planning and
management of biodiversity. Entities within the United Nations system and
non-governmental organizations are also collaborating to strengthen national
capacities for undertaking biodiversity programmes. Among the activities and
programmes under way are the preparation of national biodiversity studies,
strategies and action plans.
28. The Convention on Biological Diversity and other related agreements will
be the principal instruments for undertaking the conservation of biodiversity
and the sustainable use of biological and genetic resources. In
paragraph 15.7 (e) of Agenda 21, the international community is called upon to
promote cooperation between the parties to relevant international conventions
and action plans with the aim of strengthening and coordinating efforts to
conserve biological diversity and the sustainable use of biological resources.
The unprecedented rate of ratification of the Convention and its entry into
force on 29 December 1993, which was rapidly succeeded by the first meeting of
the Conference of Parties (Bahamas, 28 November-9 December 1994), have already
served to demonstrate the commitment of the international community to the
goals of the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and the
fair and equitable sharing of any benefits arising from that use.
29. UNCED provided the impetus for countries to start taking the necessary
steps for incorporating biodiversity issues into their development policies,
processes and plans. However, since then few Governments have incorporated
biodiversity concerns in their development and action plans and much still
remains to be done to make the protection of biodiversity a reality.
30. A number of major initiatives have been taken to implement the
Convention on Biological Diversity and Agenda 21, including the preparation of
biodiversity country studies, strategies, and action plans, a global
biodiversity assessment report, strengthening developing countries' capacities
in biodiversity data management, the establishment of the Elephant and
Rhinoceros Conservation Facility, the preparation of country action plans for
the conservation of the African elephant and the African and Asian rhinoceros
in key range States, and the establishment of the Global Tiger Forum (UNEP);
the release of the Global Biodiversity Strategy (IUCN, WRI and UNEP); Global
Marine Biological Diversity Strategy (the Centre for Marine Resources, IUCN,
WRI and UNEP); Global Biodiversity: Status of the Earth's Living Resources
(WCMC, UNEP, IUCN, WWF and WRI); the World Watch List for Domestic Animal
Diversity (UNEP and FAO); the launch of the Programme Diversitas (UNESCO, IUBS
and SCOPE); global biodiversity forums (IUCN, WRI and UNEP) and regional
workshops on the Convention on Biological Diversity (UNEP); the creation of
the System-wide Programme on Genetic Resources (SGRP) (FAO); the harmonization
of the International Undertaking on Plant Genetic Resources (FAO); the
convening of an international forum on the theme "Biodiversity, science and
development: towards a new partnership" (IUBS and UNESCO); the preparation of
the International Conference on Biosphere Reserves (UNESCO); and the
establishment of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to support, among
others, national, regional and global biodiversity-related activities (World
Bank, UNDP and UNEP).
II. REVIEW OF PROGRESS ACHIEVED: MAIN POLICY ISSUES
AND EXPERIENCES
31. The assessment of progress achieved since UNCED in implementing
chapter 15 of Agenda 21 (Conservation of biological diversity) reveals that
most United Nations system activities relevant to chapter 15 are concentrated
in the areas of management-related activities, human resources development,
capacity-building, data and information, and international and regional
cooperation. There is little or no evidence of major initiatives being
undertaken on technology transfer or finance, issues that call for
multi-agency responses. Some of the activities specified in chapter 15 also
require large amounts of capital investment to achieve their objectives. Due
to financial constraints and other reasons, most agencies appear to be
continuing with their established work programme priorities although a special
focus is being placed on biodiversity.
32. At the time of preparing the present report, information on country
experiences was not yet available.
A. Experiences of major groups and non-governmental
organizations
1. Indigenous and rural communities
33. In the aftermath of UNCED, the contribution of indigenous and rural
communities to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and as
innovators has been recognized but not necessarily fully understood.
Indigenous peoples are to be found in diverse areas, including forests, all
over the world.
34. The result of the innovative activity of farmers lies in their fields.
For example, the Mende farmers of Sierra Leone, independent of foreign
experts, conduct field trials, test new seeds against different soil types and
compare results. In the Horn of Africa, Ethiopian farmers maintain variety
performance records, sometimes inscribed on door posts. Farmers normally
breed for specific micro-environments, but it is often the case that their
local varieties can perform remarkably well in roughly similar environments in
other parts of the world. Research institutes report the use of an Ethiopian
farmer variety in Burkina Faso and a South African variety in Ethiopia. Rural
societies maintain agricultural biodiversity because it is essential to their
survival. They breed their own improved varieties for the same reason. For
them, there is no useful distinction between conservation and development.
35. Minimizing risk is an important part of the livelihood strategies of
rural communities. West Africa's Azande farmers actually increase both the
number and the complexity of their crop experiments following poor harvests.
Faced with striga weed infestation in their millet, farmers in Niger have
sought out advice from other Sahelian communities with longer experience and
have developed strategies to trap striga by inter-planting sesame. Formal
sector researchers are now looking for and finding genuine inventiveness in
rural communities, ranging from cassava cultivators in the Dominican Republic
to potato growers in the Andes and rice farmers in the Philippines.
36. However, the cultivated fields and the domesticated crops and animals
are just one part of the story. In fact, evidence is mounting that virtually
all of the biodiversity within the reach of rural communities, be it in field
or forest, has been nurtured or developed by community conservers and
innovators. What are often called wild species are often an integrated part
of farming systems and can be considered to form part of the intellectual
achievements and contributions of rural societies. The Chacoba of Bolivia,
for example, make use of almost four fifths of the woody species in their
surrounding forests. The Ka'apor of Brazil use three quarters of their tree
diversity, while in Venezuela the Panere use about half their documented
diversity. All of them use between one fifth and one half of all woody
species for food and up to one third for medicinal purposes.
37. The importance of so-called wild species to the food supply of rural
communities is brought home by the Mende of Sierra Leone, who draw less than
one fifth of their nutrition from cultivated species and more than half from
forests, streams and fallow fields; the remainder comes from local markets and
plantation crops. In the Bungoma District of western Kenya, almost half of
all families incorporate wild species in their home gardens and only a
marginally lower percentage of families collect them for food in the forest.
Because local communities rely on foods collected throughout their
environment, distinctions between the biodiversity in agricultural and natural
ecosystems are blurred. The maintenance of diversity in all ecosystems is
important to meet the twin goals of conservation and livelihood security.
38. Despite their importance for livelihood security, these crops of local
importance, farmer-developed varieties and wild foods are largely ignored by
conventional agricultural and forestry research and development, which focuses
attention on only a limited number of domesticated crops of global importance.
Policy makers should ensure that new agricultural technologies and changing
patterns of land use and land tenure do not reduce the availability of wild
food resources or eliminate the use of local crops and varieties. On the
contrary, appropriate policy incentives are needed to support the conservation
and sustainable use of this important part of agricultural biodiversity.
2. Women
39. It is increasingly recognized that the empowerment of women is an
essential component of sustainability; it is less well recognized that women
have a special role in relation to the protection of biological diversity.
40. Women play a major part in the protection of biological diversity
through their many roles and responsibilities. In the South, women act as
resource managers. Women tend the fields and grow the food that feeds their
families; in fact, women grow most of the food in Africa. They gather the
firewood and raise the alarm when the forest dwindles. In the case of the
Chipko movement in India, for example, the threat of deforestation was enough
to rally the local women to civil disobedience to protect the ecosystem. They
knew how closely their well-being was tied to that of the forest. They knew
that the forest provided more than timber, that its dead limbs provided the
heat to cook their meals, that the living biomass of the forest provided pure
water and that the roots of the trees held the soil along the hillsides.
41. Sudanese farmer-breeders are usually women. Kayapo women in the
Brazilian Amazon not only breed new crop varieties but also preserve
representative samples in hillside genebanks. Tanimuka and Yukuma women in
the Colombian Amazon have bred and preserved numerous clones of peach palm
with spineless trunks and unusually large and seedless fruits. During the
1984 famine in the southern Sudan, Toposa women risked their own lives to hide
the seeds for the next year's planting.
42. Other women around the world have also recognized the need, to not only
protect biodiversity but also restore it. The Green Belt Movement in Kenya,
involving over 80,000 women to date, maintains more than 1,000 nurseries where
not just mono-cultural plantations but a variety of trees are planted to
provide for human and non-human needs.
43. In many societies, women have led the resistance to the non-sustainable
exploitation of resources. Penan women and children have spent weeks on
logging blockades in Sarawak attempting to protect what is left of the world's
oldest rainforests on the island of Borneo, where unsustainable logging has
resulted in appallingly high rates of species extinction.
44. In the industrialized countries, women frequently head organizations and
community movements for the protection of wilderness and biodiversity, and
they also play a significant role as consumers. Millions of women (and men)
in such countries are keenly aware of the need to reduce consumption and learn
to live with consumption levels that do not stress the Earth's carrying
capacity or deny large segments of humanity access to sufficient resources to
meet their rudimentary needs. Some far-sighted corporations capitalize on and
encourage the power of the consumer when they promote rainforest products in
cosmetics and shampoos, thus assisting in maintaining biological diversity.
45. Consumer choice to avoid non-sustainably harvested products, whether
from Canada's temperate rainforests or the Brazilian Amazon, changes the
economic realities of doing business. But women in industrialized countries
are not uniformly wealthy consumers; indigenous women in those countries often
have a subsistence livelihood in which they are close to the land and its
biodiversity. A. G'wichin, woman and founder member of the Yukon legislature,
has dedicated herself to the protection of the land, particularly through
opposition to the proposal from the previous United States Administration to
open up the porcupine caribou calving grounds on the United States side of the
border to oil and gas development. Meanwhile, Cree women of Canoe Lake in
Saskatchewan spent months on Canada's longes running a blockade against
clear-cut logging. And Innu women from Labrador have toured Canada seeking
support for their struggle to stop low-level military flights over their
territory, which threaten the world's largest remaining caribou herd and
several endangered species.
46. It is critical that the role of women as resource managers, community
activists, consumers and environmental advocates be recognized when strategies
for the protection of biological diversity are being developed. Women should
participate at the local, regional, national and international levels as plans
are made to meet commitments under Agenda 21 and the Convention on Biological
Diversity. As resource managers, women should be consulted and supported in
what they are already doing to protect biological diversity. Protecting
biological diversity should not be seen as something separate and apart from
other human development priorities. It may just be that the role of women in
protecting biodiversity will provide a bridge between environment and
development on the path to sustainability.
3. Non-governmental organizations
47. Non-governmental organizations participated actively in the UNCED
process; the negotiation of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; the FAO Commission on
Plant Genetic Resources; and the ninth session of the Conference on the
Parties to CITES. Their role, together with the entities within the United
Nations system, was critical in raising the awareness of the need to conserve
biological diversity and make sustainable use of biological resources. The
meetings, workshops and other forums organized by the non-governmental
organizations provide platforms for a better understanding of the issues and
the linkages between biodiversity and other sectoral and cross-sectoral issues
of Agenda 21. They emphasize the role of indigenous people and their
communities in biodiversity planning and management. On the basis of
available information, the main activities of some major groups are summarized
below.
48. The World Conservation Union (IUCN), in collaboration with WRI and UNEP,
supports the organization of global biodiversity forums as an international
mechanism for continuing dialogue and debate among people working in resource
management, research, education, industry as well as policy makers,
non-governmental organizations and community members residing near or within
biodiversity important areas, concerning their options for action to save,
study and make sustainable and equitable use of biodiversity.
49. The IUCN programme on biodiversity at the global, regional and national
levels was organized under five major themes: (a) integrating biodiversity
into national planning process; (b) providing advisory services and
facilitating support on biodiversity issues to the Global Environment Facility
(GEF), the World Bank, the regional development banks and UNEP, as well as
national Governments; (c) developing policies on biodiversity; (d) supporting
international programmes on biodiversity; and (e) supporting biodiversity
components of other IUCN programmes. The increasing demands on the programme
have far outweighed staff resources but IUCN was still able to secure a sound
financial basis for 1993-1995 and began recruiting additional professional
staff. Major achievements include the organization of global biodiversity
forums, in collaboration with WRI and UNEP; an active outreach programme,
including numerous publications and presentations; a significant contribution
to the promotion of the implementation of the Convention on Biological
Diversity at all levels; and a substantive review of the pilot phase of GEF.
50. The African Centre for Technology studies (ACTS) has been engaged in
various policy research activities on biodiversity and related biotechnology,
including (a) the organization of the first international conference on the
Convention on Biological Diversity, on the theme "National interests and
international imperatives"; (b) embarking on the analysis of the technological
capabilities and institutional abilities of selected African countries for
biodiversity management and biotechnology research and development; and
(c) the exploration of institutional avenues and policy options for promoting
the participation and enhancing the capabilities of local communities in the
implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
51. The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)
continued to carry out research in partnership with national, regional and
international genetic resources programmes as a means of strengthening the
scientific basis for its work encompassing in situ and ex situ conservation
and the sustainable use of plant, livestock and aquatic genetic resources.
Capacity-building in national programmes and training were other key
components of CGIAR activities.
52. Since 1975, CGIAR centres in collaboration with national institutions
and United Nations bodies, such as FAO, UNEP, UNDP and the World Bank, have
collectively assembled one of the world's largest ex situ collections of plant
genetic resources: over 500,000 individual entries, held in the genebanks of
11 centres. In addition, the CGIAR system has helped to conserve 140 plant
species in the genebanks of 450 non-CGIAR institutions in over 90 countries.
All of the genetic resource collections conserved at CGIAR centres are held in
trust for the benefit of humankind and for the use of the scientific community
world wide. The CGIAR genebanks provide raw materials for plant breeders,
farmers and other users. Collectively, they distribute more than 600,000
samples of germplasm from the in-trust collections and breeding programmes
each year to individuals and institutes in 120 countries. Agreements between
the CGIAR centres and FAO to place the in-trust collections under the auspices
of FAO were concluded in October 1994.
53. CGIAR has been carefully examining the role of its centres, particularly
in light of Agenda 21 and the Convention on Biological Diversity, and in
May 1994 CGIAR decided to establish the System-wide Genetic Resources
Programme (SGRP), recognizing that integrating the current activities of many
centres would greatly enhance transparency and accountability, as well as the
impact of the CGIAR in its international efforts. SGRP thus comprises the
independently managed genetic resources units and programmes of the individual
centres, with IPGRI as the lead centre.
54. Through research, working in partnership with other organizations at the
local, national and international levels, CGIAR also seeks to develop improved
technologies, strategies and policies for both the in situ and ex situ
conservation of plants and animals that are useful or potentially useful for
agriculture, forestry and fisheries.
55. The World Resources Institute (WRI), in collaboration with ACTS and
INBio (Costa Rica), has published a policy research report on the new and
rapidly evolving legal and institutional mechanisms for regulating the
exploration of wild plant, animal and microbial substances. The report offers
guidelines to nations who need to develop domestic policies and legislation to
regulate access and provide incentives for the exploration of biodiversity for
potential uses. WRI is also collaborating with UNEP on the preparation of
guidelines for the preparation of national biodiversity strategies and action
plans with the aim of streamlining the various development and environmental
plans and incorporating biodiversity goals and activities into sectoral and
cross-sectoral plans.
56. The World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC), a joint IUCN/WWF/UNEP
venture, continued to compile and manage substantial global databases on
threatened animals and plants, and published the 1993 United Nations List of
National Parks and Protected Areas, Global Biodiversity: Status of the
Earth's Living Resources, and the Biodiversity Map Library. WCMC, in
collaboration with UNEP, provided technical support to many countries in the
area of biodiversity information-gathering, dissemination and management.
B. Matters related to finance and technology
57. In paragraph 15.8 of Agenda 21, the UNCED secretariat estimated that the
average total annual cost (1993-2000) of implementing the activities of
chapter 15 was about $3.5 billion, including about $1.75 billion from the
international community on grant or concessional terms. These are only
indicative figures and estimates of order of magnitude; actual costs depend on
the specific strategies and programmes adopted by countries. Financing
biodiversity-related activities is a central issue for the Convention on
Biological Diversity and especially for GEF, which continues to mobilize
financial resources for biodiversity activities.
58. Additional financial resources have been provided by GEF
(US$ 303.5 million, excluding co-financing by the United States Agency for
International Development (USAID)) for the purpose of the conservation and
sustainable use of biological diversity. Various donors provided
approximately US$ 3 million as additional resources to assist developing
countries in the implementation of CITES, supporting mainly the
capacity-building component, species surveys and management strategies.
59. The question of estimating the gap between financial requirements and
available resources for financing activities relevant to chapter 15 of
Agenda 21 is being addressed by the biodiversity country studies (UNEP).
Issues related to the amount of financial resources needed for implementation
of the Convention on Biological Diversity, as well as issues related to
eligibility criteria and the institutional structure required to operate the
financial mechanism created under the Convention were considered by the
Conference of the Parties at its first meeting (Nassau, the Bahamas,
28 November-9 December 1994). The interim secretariat of the Convention
prepared a useful paper on methodologies for estimating the funding needs of
multilateral biodiversity assistance between 1993 and 2000, as well as a paper
on incremental costs. The lack of transparency in financial mechanisms and
the excessive amount of time needed to access them are causes for concern.
60. Many United Nations bodies and non-governmental organizations have
reviewed their programmes in relation to Agenda 21 and the Convention on
Biological Diversity and have increased their financial support for relevant
activities at the national, regional and global levels. The precise total
figure of additional resources has not been estimated. Resources currently
available, however, do not come anywhere near meeting current biodiversity
conservation needs. If biodiversity concerns are to be adequately met, a
radical change of view will be required among key decision makers.
Biodiversity needs to be seen as a political priority not only in terms of its
conservation but also for the potentially valuable contribution it can make to
the improvement of peoples' lives, especially in developing countries.
61. Apart from GEF, the financial mechanisms that are in place and that are
being utilized by Governments and institutions for biodiversity activities
continue to encompass traditional sources of funding, namely:
(a) National government budgets, incorporating locally sourced funds
that face fierce competition from other developmental priorities;
(b) Official development assistance (ODA) obtained by Governments
through bilateral/multilateral agreements;
(c) Non-governmental organizations funding arrangements, sometimes with
(but often without) the due involvement of national Governments or the
participation of local counterpart non-governmental organizations;
(d) Private sector investments, incorporating varying degrees of
investments by foreign-based transnational corporations (TNCs) involved in
bio-prospecting.
62. Based on General Assembly resolution 44/228 and the commitments entered
into at UNCED, developing countries had great expectations concerning
financial transfers from North to South through ODAs, international NGOs and
TNCs; the level of actual transfers, however, has been far less than was
expected.
63. In Agenda 21 and the Convention on Biological Diversity, a clear link
was recognized between the supply of genetic resources, on the one hand, and
access to and the transfer of technologies that help characterize, evaluate,
conserve and make use of those resources, on the other. This implies the need
for the development of creative partnerships among nations and between the
public and private sectors, by means of which nations and institutions can
establish collaborative ventures for technology transfer; technology can then
be acquired and adapted through conventional programmes, such as training,
information exchange and access to patent information.
64. The application of environmental policies and/or economic instruments to
stimulate the development, transfer and dissemination of appropriate
technologies in support of the conservation of biological diversity and the
sustainable use of biological resources featured prominently during the
negotiation of the Convention on Biological Diversity. An indicative list of
transferable technologies and know-how related to the implementation of the
Convention (see UNEP/CBD/IC/2/11) 6/ was prepared by the Open-ended
Intergovernmental Meeting of Scientific Experts on Biological Diversity for
the Subsidiary Body on the Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice
(SBSTTA), and a description of appropriate models for access to and the
transfer of technology is expected to feature in the medium-term plan of the
Conference of the Parties. The Meeting also prepared four papers to provide a
basis for developing appropriate models of mechanisms for access to and
transfer of the relevant technologies on the following topics: (a) ways and
means of promoting the development and/or transfer of innovative, efficient
and state-of-the-art technologies relevant to the conservation and sustainable
use of biological diversity; (b) ways and means of integrating into modern
management the practices of indigenous and local communities that embody
traditional lifestyles; (c) scientific and technical programmes for training
in conservation and the sustainable use of biological diversity at the
regional, national and local levels; and (d) technologies and know-how for
data collection, management and transfer. The Intergovernmental Committee on
the Convention on Biological Diversity (ICCBD), at its second meeting in
June 1994, made recommendations that may facilitate the establishment of a
clearing-house mechanism for technical and scientific cooperation within the
Convention.
65. Each country should assess its technological capability, determine its
needs and decide on how much to invest in technology transfer, including
biotechnology development, as well as how to integrate technology development
into national development strategies. The relevance of each technology to the
conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity should be carefully assessed
in technology transfer arrangements. Special attention should be paid to the
likely socio-economic impacts of such technologies, and to the need to duly
recognize, reward, document and develop the knowledge, innovations and
practices of indigenous people and local communities, and integrate them into
modern management practices.
66. The protection conferred by intellectual property rights in general and
by patents in particular is considered to be an effective means of promoting
technology, development and transfer for which adequate human and financial
resources are essential. However, while legislation on intellectual property
rights is well developed or in place in many developed countries and is under
consideration in a few developing countries and some of the economies in
transition, there are no international legal instruments or standards that
adequately recognize the rights of indigenous and local communities and
farmers over their knowledge, technologies and innovations.
C. Recent developments and experiences in international
cooperation
1. Intergovernmental processes
(a) Convention on Biological Diversity
67. The Convention on Biological Diversity entered into force on
29 December 1993 and is in the process of being effectively implemented. By
18 December 1994, 167 States and the European Community had signed and 107
States had ratified the Convention, which assured the widest possible
representation of countries in the first meeting of the Conference of the
Parties. UNEP, in collaboration with UNESCO and FAO, continued to provide
scientific and technical support to the secretariat of the Convention and to
facilitate intergovernmental consultations through the meetings of ICCBD and
the first meeting of the Conference of the Parties.
68. The first meeting of the Conference of the Parties (Nassau, the Bahamas,
28 November-9 December 1994) provided, inter alia, an opportunity to outline a
programme of work for advancing the objectives and provisions of the
Convention, as well as to set the stage and establish the mechanisms needed
for its implementation. The decisions adopted by the Conference are described
below.
Rules of procedure for meetings of the Conference of the Parties
69. The Conference of the Parties adopted its rules of procedure, with the
exception of paragraph 1 of rule 40, which deals with voting procedures on
matters of substance.
Financial resources and mechanisms
70. The Conference adopted policy, strategy and programme priorities, as
well as eligibility criteria for access to and utilization of financial
resources, and a list of developed country Parties and other Parties that
voluntarily assume the obligations of contributing financial resources to the
Convention Trust Fund. Programme priorities are mainly based on national
priorities, including capacity-building to facilitate the preparation and
implementation of national strategies, plans and programmes. The Conference
also decided that the restructured GEF should continue to serve as the
institutional structure for operating the financial mechanism under the
Convention on an interim basis, and that the restructured GEF should be
instructed to take prompt measures to support programme priorities and
eligibility criteria for access to and utilization of financial resources as
the Conference had defined them. The Conference also adopted the financial
rules for the administration of the Convention Trust Fund and the 1995 budget
of US$ 4.8 million to fund activities under the secretariat of the Convention.
Clearing-house mechanisms for technical and scientific cooperation
71. The Conference of the Parties requested the secretariat of the
Convention to prepare a comprehensive study containing concrete costed
recommendations to assist the Conference of the Parties in the establishment
of the clearing-house mechanism.
Selection of a competent international organization to carry out the functions
of the secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity
72. The Conference of the Parties selected UNEP to carry out the functions
of the secretariat of the Convention.
Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice
73. The Conference decided that the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical
and Technological Advice (SBSTTA) should operate in accordance with the terms
of reference contained in article 25, paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Convention
until the Conference could further elaborate them. SBSTTA was requested to
prepare a proposal for its medium-term programme of work based on the
priorities set in the programme of work of the Conference of the Parties and
on article 25 of the Convention, and to develop/establish its modus operandi
at its first meeting (to be held at UNESCO headquarters in Paris,
4-8 September 1995). SBSTTA was requested, in particular, to consider the
following matters, on which it was requested to advise the Conference of the
Parties at its second meeting:
(a) Alternative ways and means for the Conference of the Parties to
start the process of considering the components of biological diversity,
particularly those under threat, and for identifying action that could be
taken under the Convention;
(b) Ways and means of promoting and facilitating access to technology,
as well as its transfer and development;
(c) Scientific and technical information for inclusion in national
reports on measures taken to implement the provisions of the Convention and
the effectiveness of such measures in meeting the objectives of the
Convention;
(d) Scientific, technical and technological aspects of the conservation
and sustainable use of coastal and marine biological diversity.
Preparation of the participation of the Convention on Biological Diversity in
the third session of the Commission on Sustainable Development
74. The Conference of the Parties requested its President to transmit a
statement on its behalf to the high-level segment of the third session of the
Commission on Sustainable Development. In the statement, the Conference noted
that the Convention on Biological Diversity was the primary international
legal instrument for advancing the conservation and sustainable use of
biological diversity and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising
out of the use of genetic resources. The Conference noted the importance that
it attached to the development of a substantive relationship with the
Commission on Sustainable Development given its responsibility in respect of
Agenda 21 and the complementarity of its mandate with that of the Conference
of the Parties. The Conference appealed to the Commission to make all efforts
in its own right to advance the concerns of the Convention. In addition to
addressing particular sectoral issues on the agenda of the Commission at its
third session, the Conference stressed that biological diversity was a
cross-cutting issue that was relevant to virtually all Commission concerns.
The statement also noted the decisions taken by the Conference of the Parties
at its first meeting, as well as its medium-term programme of work.
Medium-term programme of work of the Conference of the Parties 1995-1997
75. The Conference also adopted its medium-term programme of work
(1995-1997), which provided a systematic, year-by-year approach to routine
items, as well as new thematic matters that the Conference wished to deal with
in the future. Standing items included, inter alia, the conservation of
threatened components of biological diversity and items related to access to
genetic resources, technology transfer and handling biotechnology. The
Conference took into account the deep concern and interest of the Parties
about the need for the safe transfer, handling and use of all living modified
organisms resulting from biotechnology so as to avoid any adverse effects on
the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. It decided to
establish an open-ended ad hoc group of experts to consider without undue
delay the need for and modalities of a protocol, containing appropriate
procedures to be followed in the field of the safe transfer, handling and use
of any living modified organism resulting from biotechnology that might have
an adverse effect on the conservation and sustainable use of biological
diversity.
Location of the secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity
76. The Conference of the Parties agreed to postpone a decision on the
location of the secretariat of the Convention to the second meeting; the
Conference outlined some of the details Governments might wish to include in
their offers to host the secretariat.
International Day for Biological Diversity
77. The Conference of the Parties recommended to the General Assembly that
it adopt 29 December, the date of entry into force of the Convention on
Biological Diversity, as International Day for Biological Diversity; the
General Assembly accordingly adopted that Day at its forty-ninth session.
(b) Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna
and Flora
78. At the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties of CITES (Fort
Lauderdale, Florida, 7-18 November 1994), 118 of the 124 Parties to the
Convention were present. During the meeting, a strategic plan stressing the
priorities that should be implemented during the next three years was adopted,
as well as listing criteria for including species in the specific appendices
to the Convention. By consensus, Governments requested the secretariat of the
Convention to make sure that a close cooperation with the interim secretariat
of the Convention on Biological Diversity was developed, since the linkages
between the two conventions were of major importance to the successful
achievement of sustainable development. It was also stressed that CITES
should strengthen its cooperation with other trade agreements, such as the
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the International Tropical
Timber Organization (ITTO), the International Wheat Council (IWC), and the
International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). The
important role played by non-governmental organizations in recent years in the
implementation of CITES was also noted. The budget and work plan were
approved, and Governments placed great emphasis on the need for GEF partners
to recognize CITES as an important area for financing through the biodiversity
portfolio.
(c) Climate change and desertification conventions
79. Recognition of the world as truly one major interconnected ecosystem has
increased appreciation that actions in one area affect human well-being and
ecosystem health elsewhere. Deforestation and fossil-fuel burning, for
example, contribute to climate change through global warming. Ecological
effects on biological diversity due to climate change and desertification will
amplify the impacts that are already being imposed on natural ecosystems by
humans. Many species, such as migratory species, species dependent on the
timing of ice-melting, Arctic communities, marine, coastal and peripheral
populations, genetically impoverished species, mountain and alpine
communities, and species that inhabit dry lands, semi-arid and arid
ecosystems, are all likely to be adversely affected by global warming; the
climatic changes predicted may bring about catastrophic losses in genetic
resources and species and ecosystem diversity.
80. The loss of biological diversity is particularly important in dry lands,
where natural habitat and native vegetation are often the sole livelihood of
farmers and pastoralists. The degradation of dry lands poses a threat to
biological diversity and the carrying capacities of those lands. Some of the
most important crops originated in dry lands, such as wheat, barley, sorghum,
millet, many pulses and cotton, as well as animals that have become closely
linked to the development of human civilization, such as the horse, the sheep,
the goat, the cow, the camel and the lama. Moreover, close to 1 billion
people inhabit dry lands. When a dry-land species adapted to dry conditions
is lost, it is very likely that it is lost for ever; because species and genes
well adapted to drier areas are so rare, such loss is immeasurable.
81. The implications of the loss of biodiversity at all the above-mentioned
levels are serious and ominous; such loss has consequences both for the
species that is threatened or made extinct and for the habitats that are
degraded and become desertified and unable to function properly. Global
warming could indeed play havoc with the world's living organisms, affecting
humanity itself. Many species that inhabit islands, floodplains or coastal
areas, including some human populations, may not be able to redistribute
themselves fast enough to keep up with the projected climatic changes. Many
of the islands could well be completely submerged, with complete loss of their
flora and fauna. Both the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in those
Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, particularly in
Africa have direct intimate linkages to the Convention on Biological
Diversity; mechanisms for cooperation between and among them should therefore
be established.
(d) International undertaking on plant genetic resources
82. The FAO Commission on Plant Genetic Resources (PGR), at its fifth
session (April 1993), recognized that the Convention on Biological Diversity,
once operative, would play a central role in determining policy on PGR in the
future. If the Convention decided to adopt a protocol on PGR, the Commission
would play a major role in developing such a protocol, in full cooperation
with the Conference of the Parties of the Convention. The Commission stated
that such a protocol might be served by its own governing body, secretariat
and financial mechanism.
83. At its extraordinary session (7-11 November 1994), the Commission
initiated the revision of the Undertaking on Plant Genetic Resources, in
particular the consolidation of its text and annexes in harmony with the
Convention, and the inclusion of issues relevant to access to plant genetic
resources for food and agriculture and the implementation of farmers' rights.
In that regard, the Commission noted that negotiations would be in the hands
of Governments and that revision of the Undertaking should be carried out
carefully. Throughout the process, communication should be maintained between
the Commission and the Convention and subsequently the Conference of the
Parties of the Convention. At a later stage, the Conference of Parties might
consider the desirability of transferring the revised undertaking into a
protocol. The revision process would be an integral part of the preparatory
process of the International Technical Conference on the Conservation and
Utilization of Plant Genetic Resources (to be held in Leipzig, Germany in
1996). It is intended to conclude the negotiations of the revised Undertaking
in early 1996.
2. United Nations system
84. Since UNCED, much work has been done by organizations and bodies of the
United Nations system in support of Agenda 21 and the Biodiversity Convention
(see annex for details).
III. CONCLUSIONS AND PROPOSALS FOR ACTION
A. Conclusions
85. As noted, the direction taken by relevant entities within the United
Nations system in the area of biodiversity has focused upon activities at the
national level, supplemented as appropriate by regional programmes and
international activities. The Convention on Biological Diversity and other
related agreements will continue to be the principal instruments for
undertaking and ensuring the effective conservation and sustainable use of
biological and genetic resources, and the fair and equitable distribution of
its benefits. The Commission on Sustainable Development should respond to the
constructive statement from the Conference of the Parties to the Convention by
encouraging further development of the links established with the Convention
and by lending support to the Convention as the lead entity in coordinating
existing relevant agreements at the global and regional levels. In this
regard, particular attention should be paid to the requirements contained in
paragraph 15.7 (f) of Agenda 21, as well as to the management-related
activities indicated in paragraphs 15.5 (c), (d) and (e), which would underpin
the successful formulation and implementation of the national strategies,
plans or programmes called for in article 6 of the Convention.
86. Since UNCED, there appear to have been no major initiatives on the
issues of technology transfer and financial mechanism(s) that would ensure or
guarantee the new and additional financial resources required by developing
countries. These are issues that require urgent intergovernmental and
multi-agency responses.
87. The active participation of non-governmental organizations in the UNCED
process, as well as in the negotiation process for the conventions on
biological diversity and climate change, was critical in raising public
awareness on crucial issues and linkages among the respective conventions,
other related agreements, and various sectoral and cross-sectoral issues of
Agenda 21. Their critical role should continue to be recognized and their
participation should be more fully supported, especially at the national and
regional levels.
88. In addition, some of the issues that still need to be addressed include
(a) the harmonization of principles and obligations at the global, regional
and national levels; (b) implementation of methods and procedures for better
understanding and identification of the various components of biodiversity,
through the regular update of fauna and flora inventories, and the
conservation and management of indigenous species (domesticated and
cultivated); (c) the mobilization and exchange of information relevant to
conservation and the sustainable use of biodiversity; (d) the coordinated
promotion of public awareness at the local, national and international levels;
and (e) the determination of the potential impact of intended projects and
programmes on the delicate balance and well-being of fragile and complex
ecosystems world wide. Assessment of social dimensions and human impacts is a
prerequisite for the successful sustainable use and conservation of
biodiversity.
89. Significant progress, however, has been made on most of the issues
pertaining to the Convention on Biological Diversity, and a solid foundation
was laid for the work of the Conference of the Parties, at its first meeting
in the Bahamas, towards the effective participation of the Convention at the
current session of the Commission on Sustainable Development.
B. Proposals for action
90. Based on the information provided above, it is clear that for chapter 15
of Agenda 21 to be fully and effectively implemented, work will need to be
undertaken on various issues of cooperation and coordination, joint
programming and delivery mechanisms, information exchange and policy reforms,
as described below.
1. Cooperation programmes and collaborative arrangements
91. Governments need to develop mechanisms for appropriate coordination
among biodiversity action plans and the multitude of other action plans and
strategies called for by various treaties and international institutions, as
well as the monitoring of their implementation and reporting on progress made.
Within their national biodiversity strategies and action plans, where these
exist, countries should identify priorities for regional and international
action.
92. Governments in cooperation with the United Nations system,
intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, and in full partnership
with indigenous peoples and their communities and other local communities,
taking into consideration their role in the conservation, management and
sustainable use of biodiversity, need to examine the impact of existing land-
tenure systems on biodiversity conservation, and to develop, adopt and
strengthen relevant national arrangements for supporting the best possible
land-tenure systems that facilitate the active involvement and participation
of local communities in biodiversity conservation activities.
93. Biodiversity should be treated as a cross-sectoral issue. The
Commission on Sustainable Development may wish to examine ways to ensure that
a concerted effort is made to develop common strategies for coordinating the
implementation of chapter 15 of Agenda 21 with other relevant portions of
Agenda 21 and the Convention on Biological Diversity (e.g., by identifying
policy issues, respective areas of competence, future action required and
monitoring and evaluating progress).
94. Governments, in cooperation with governmental and non-governmental
organizations, need to develop elements and mechanisms for species-specific
and ecosystem/area-specific strategies, including scientific research into the
conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, and also need to facilitate
access to relevant technologies.
95. Further efforts should be made by entities within the United Nations
system to collect and update information on their financing needs for the
implementation of Agenda 21 activities in the area of conserving biodiversity.
2. Information exchange and networking
96. Governments, entities within the United Nations system, and
intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations need to collect, analyse
and disseminate more reliable and adequate data, and to develop monitoring
mechanisms for measuring achievements made at the national, regional and
global levels. Attempts should be made to remedy the acute shortage of
information available in developing countries on the status of their national
biodiversity, a deficiency that impedes the development of monitoring and
sound management; in-country networks and national reports based on
biodiversity country studies could be useful mechanisms in this regard. To
that end, networking among those concerned should be promoted, with common
strategies and joint programming and implementation of activities.
3. Education, science, human resources development, technology
transfer and capacity-building
97. The requisite scientific, technical and managerial capacities for
implementing national biodiversity strategies, plans or programmes in response
to Agenda 21 have still not been developed, even though the political
commitment was made at UNCED to financially support biodiversity activities.
Developed countries and relevant international organizations need to establish
effective mechanisms for improving both the human and institutional capacities
of developing countries, through joint programming for capacity-building at
the national and regional levels. Particular attention is drawn to
paragraph 15.11 of Agenda 21, which calls for existing institutions to be
strengthened and for new ones responsible for the conservation of biological
diversity to be established, and for consideration to be given to the
development of mechanisms such as national biodiversity institutes or centres.
98. The international scientific community, in cooperation with Governments,
entities within the United Nations system, and intergovernmental and
non-governmental organizations, need to make efforts to develop economic tools
for determining the costs and benefits of the conservation of biodiversity and
sustainable use of biological resources, and their distribution at the local,
national, regional and global levels.
4. Policy reforms
99. Governments need to undertake activities aimed at the restructuring and
reforming of national policies, the development of incentive measures and the
revision of existing and/or the development of new legislation to realize the
objectives of Agenda 21 and the Convention on Biological Diversity. Efforts
should be made by the entities of the United Nations system, among others, to
assist Governments in this regard. To that end, entities within the United
Nations system should adjust their programmes and activities in line with
Agenda 21 and the Convention on Biological Diversity, and should develop joint
collaborative programmes and projects to promote the integrated development,
sustainable use and conservation of biological diversity.
100. Governments, in cooperation with relevant entities within the United
Nations system and the Convention on Biological Diversity, should initiate
studies and discussions on the impact of intellectual property regimes related
to genetic material on the conservation and sustainable use of biological
resources, and on how a fair and equitable sharing of those resources and the
benefits that they generate may be achieved and how to develop an adequate
system of intellectual property rights for protecting the collective knowledge
and innovations of indigenous peoples and their communities as a major social
group in biodiversity management, taking into account, inter alia any
contribution from the Conference of the Parties to the Convention.
5. Additional proposals for action
101. The United Nations system should develop and strengthen a joint approach
to assess the positive and negative impacts of macroeconomic and other global
issues that affect biodiversity, such as debt, consumption and production
patterns, land-tenure systems, population, multilateral financing, the world
trade system and its condition, and economic instruments.
102. Governments should assess existing information systems, including
networks, with the aim of establishing communication links among regions for
the better exchange of data and the dissemination and management of existing
information through, inter alia, electronic mail and the use of remote
sensing, so as to facilitate the survey and monitoring of biodiversity.
103. While the biodiversity information base is far from complete and much
remains to be learned about biodiversity, there is now adequate scientific
basis to begin the formulation and implementation of biodiversity programmes
in most countries. Efforts should be made by Governments and the United
Nations system, among others, to make full use of existing knowledge and to
further improve and increase understanding of the role of biodiversity in
sustainable development. Once completed, the global biodiversity assessment
of knowledge should yield a useful baseline against which gaps in knowledge
could be identified and addressed.
104. The Commission on Sustainable Development may wish to:
(a) Call upon multilateral organizations and intergovernmental and
non-governmental organizations to cooperate with Governments in developing a
coordinating mechanism to ensure the effective implementation of existing
conventions and agreements on biological diversity and the rational use of
limited resources;
(b) Examine ways and means of ensuring that concerted efforts are made
to develop common and coherent strategies for the implementation of chapter 15
and related chapters of Agenda 21;
(c) Respond positively to the statement of the Conference of Parties to
the Convention on Biological Diversity at its first meeting, with reference
to, inter alia, cooperating actively with the Convention, urging widespread
ratification of the Convention, encouraging Governments to improve the
coordination among their various ministries/departments of chapter 15 and
other chapters of Agenda 21, notably chapters 10 to 14, and encouraging the
Convention to take the lead, with the support and cooperation of other
relevant multilateral, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations,
in coordinating existing relevant agreements at the global and regional levels
for the effective implementation of resources;
(d) Encourage a joint approach by the United Nations system in assessing
the positive as well as the negative impacts of macroeconomic and other issues
related to biodiversity.
Notes
1/ United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio
de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992, vol. I, Resolutions Adopted by the Conference
(United Nations publication, Sales No. E.93.I.8 and corrigendum),
resolution 1, annex II.
2/ See United Nations Environment Programme, Convention on Biological
Diversity (Environmental Law and Institutions Programme Activity Centre),
June 1992.
3/ United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 993, No. 14537, p. 243.
4/ Selected Multilateral Treaties in the Field of the Environment
(Nairobi, United Nations Environment Programme, 1982), vol. I, p. 500.
5/ United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 996, No. 14583, p. 245.
6/ The indicative list is quite extensive and covers (a) technologies
and know-how relevant to the identification, characterization and monitoring
of ecosystems, species and genetic resources, (b) technologies appropriate for
the in situ and ex situ conservation of components of biological diversity and
(c) technologies for the sustainable use of biological diversity.
Annex
UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM ACTIVITIES IN SUPPORT OF CHAPTER 15
OF AGENDA 21 AND THE CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
1. Management-related activities
1. FAO major programmes on agriculture, fisheries and forestry have a
number of objectives and activities that support the conservation and
sustainable use of biodiversity by (a) fostering international cooperation and
the promotion of national action for the conservation and sustainable use of
plant and animal genetic resources, with an emphasis on building national
capacity for conservation, evaluation and utilization of these resources for
breeding work and related biotechnologies; (b) assessing and developing
further the potential of new or underutilized species for agriculture,
forestry and fisheries; and (c) encouraging the diversification of production
systems and the multiple use of agricultural products and by-products, as an
integral part of the maintenance of diversity in rural areas. The main
priorities of the programme on natural resources address issues relating to
knowledge, the utilization and conservation of biological resources and
diversity, the assessment of standing vegetation and its present and potential
contribution to agricultural productivity, and the establishment of
sustainable farming systems. The programme on crops aims at promoting
national capabilities to conserve, enhance and utilize plant genetic diversity
through collection, characterization, documentation and the exchange of germ
plasm; plant breeding and variety evaluation; plant propagation; international
collaboration and information exchange; the development and adoption of modern
plant biotechnology in the conservation and improvement of germ plasm; and the
promotion of cooperation among interested institutions and laboratories.
2. The FAO Commission on Plant Genetic Resources will harmonize the global
system on plant genetic resources with the Convention on Biological Diversity
and will work on issues relating to the access to existing germ plasm
collections and farmers' rights. The Commission supports international and
regional networks on in situ conservation areas; ex situ base collection under
the auspices of FAO; the organization of a fourth international technical
conference on the conservation and utilization of plant genetic resources; and
the establishment of the new global information systems for plant genetic
resources and seed exchange based on the ongoing Seed Information System.
3. In the area of livestock genetic resources, FAO in collaboration with
UNEP supports the establishment of a comprehensive animal genetic resources
programme and the preparation of an updated worldwatch list of domestic animal
diversity.
4. The FAO Fisheries Programme supports the conservation and sustainable
utilization of biological diversity in high seas, the Exclusive Economic Zones
(EEZs), coastal zone ecosystems and inland water courses and wetlands, with
the aim of promoting sustainability in world-wide fisheries and the
restoration of world resources to levels consistent with the major
recommendations of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and
relevant UNCED decisions; strengthening the national capabilities of
developing countries for managing their fisheries, conserving their aquatic
ecosystems and preventing the degradation of their aquatic environments;
developing an international code of conduct for responsible fishing, taking
into consideration all relevant issues, especially those relating to
biological, environmental and technological matters; and promoting the
integration of the fishery sector into coastal area management.
5. The FAO programme on forestry, in collaboration with UNEP and other
organizations, supports the in situ conservation of forest genetic resources
and of natural ecosystems by assessing the state of forest resources and
contributing to the sustainable management of wildlife, national parks or
other protected areas, with the aim of promoting the sustainable management of
forest and tree resources and enhancing their sustained utilization on an
environmentally sound basis, while maximizing their contribution to
socio-economic development; the conservation of forest ecosystems; and the
integration of forests and trees into land-use systems so as to sustain the
productivity of land and water resources and the stability of the environment.
6. The main activities of UNESCO involved the conservation and sustainable
use of terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity centres around the international
network of biosphere reserves (324 reserves in 83 countries, covering more
than 211 million hectares, in which research and monitoring activities are
conducted and the participation of local communities is systematically
promoted); the UNESCO MAB programme; the World Heritage Convention (more than
100 natural sites at present, most of which are inscribed on the World
Heritage List for their high biodiversity value); the Coastal Marine Research
Programme (focusing on the functioning and sustainable use of coastal marine
ecosystems and of their biodiversity); the UNESCO/IUBS/SCOPE Programme
Diversitas (focusing on the ecosystems function of biodiversity,
specifications and extinctions, and the distributions and dynamics of
biodiversity); the WWF/UNESCO Programme on People and Plants (focusing on
ethno-botany and the sustainable use of indigenous plants); and the
microbiological resources centres (MIRCENs) network. The international
network of biosphere reserves, the UNESCO programme on coastal and marine
research and the MIRCENs network provide important tools for research and
monitoring activities related to biological diversity. Scientific and
technical training and capacity-building are fundamental elements of various
UNESCO programmes. Under the UNEP/UNESCO International Environmental
Education Programme, formal secondary and university-level education,
including the subject of biodiversity, is supported. Other initiatives for
the conservation of biodiversity include studies on property rights related to
access to genetic resources and studies on ecological economics; the creation
of a format for species information; the sponsoring of a biodiversity forum
for decision makers and scientists; training and technical assistance; and the
publication and wide distribution of numerous publications for awareness-
building.
7. UNEP works to protect and make sustainable use of individual species and
their genetic resources; to conserve the habitats where they can continue to
evolve and respond to a changing environment; and to develop appropriate ways
of maintaining the maximum genetic diversity for improving agriculture,
forestry, health, industry and environment, with a special emphasis on species
with an established socio-economic value. UNEP addresses biodiversity
conservation and
sustainable use at various levels: the ecosystems/biogeographic realms level
(forests, arid zones, oceans, freshwater etc.); the species level (wildlife);
genetic resources level (plant, animal and microbial resources, and natural
resources economics); the processes level (biotechnology); the monitoring and
assessment level; and the legal level. In collaboration with sister United
Nations agencies, UNEP activities on biodiversity focus on the promotion of
effective implementation of Agenda 21, the Convention on Biological Diversity
and other relevant international conventions; strategies and action plans
through technical and scientific back-stopping; the organization of expert
meetings; the preparation of reports to respond to specific issues; the
provision of secretariats/interim secretariats to biodiversity-related
conventions for assisting in developing or strengthening national legislation
to implement the conventions; the preparation of regular global biodiversity
status reports as a basis for priority action in respect of the potential
policy implications of biodiversity conservation and utilization, including
resource management options and socio-economic implications; assisting
Governments in preparing national biodiversity country studies, strategies and
action plans to reinforce the biodiversity assessment and planning processes,
in identifying national priorities for action and in providing a baseline for
monitoring the effectiveness of action; and, through CITES, assisting
Governments in determining the status of endangered species, supporting the
preparation of management plans and establishing export quotas for species
transferred from appendix I to appendix II of the Convention.
8. UNEP, jointly with IUCN and WRI, released the Global Biodiversity
Strategy, which attempts to stimulate and implement action locally, nationally
and internationally consistent with the principles, strategic elements and
broad agenda for action contained in Agenda 21, the Convention on Biological
Diversity and the "Caring for the Earth". The Global Marine Biological
Diversity Strategy was also launched jointly with the Centre for Marine
Conservation, IUCN and WWF to focus on the threats to life in the sea and ways
to save and use it sustainably.
9. Through its various programmes, UNEP supports a wide range of activities
aiming at promoting in situ and ex situ conservation of plant, animal and
microbial genetic resources and their use for the development of agriculture,
forestry and industry, and the development of related global and regional gene
banks and information systems; conserving and managing habitats, ecosystems
and wildlife in selected representative areas of the world's biogeographic
provinces; strengthening and expanding the global network of gene banks
housing the world base collections of crop genetic resources (coordinated by
IPGRI), the global programme on livestock genetic resources (coordinated by
FAO), the LAC and African biodiversity networks, the Biodiversity Information
Network (BIN21) the microbiological resources centres (MIRCENs), the
international Microbial Strain Data Network (MSDN), the World Data Center on
Micro-organisms (WDC) and the global Information Resource on the Release of
Organisms into the Environment (IRRO); expanding and improving related
professional and institutional capabilities for the assessment and sustainable
management of biodiversity, through pilot projects and appropriate training
programmes in the conservation of biological diversity and the sustainable use
of biological resources and the application of relevant technologies, and
through training in the economics of biological resources and environmental
law and policy.
UNIDO supports programmes on the industrial utilization of medicinal and
aromatic plants, taking into consideration biodiversity conservation concerns.
Through its technology advisory services, UNIDO fosters the cooperation among
Governments, local communities and the private sector on biodiversity
prospecting. The UNIDO ICGEB provides advanced research and training in the
area of biotechnology, including the development of innovative tools and
technologies for biodiversity conservation and for the sustainable use of
genetic resources, and it promotes the application of environmentally sound
biotechnologies. In collaboration with UNEP and FAO, UNIDO supports the
establishment of regional and global networks on biodiversity and
biotechnology to facilitate access to and exchange of information among
countries, and to strengthen the development of databases on biodiversity in
developing countries.
11. Current and future work of the World Bank in support of the conservation
of biological diversity within the framework of the Convention on Biological
Diversity and Agenda 21 include: assisting Governments in the preparation and
implementation of national environmental action plans, taking into
consideration biodiversity concerns, and in the formulation of conservation
and development projects; supporting research centres, universities and grass-
roots organizations in biodiversity identification and monitoring;
strengthening the participation of local communities in the formulation,
implementation and monitoring and evaluation of in situ conservation projects,
integrating sustainable use practices into Bank loans; supporting research and
training programmes on sustainable management systems and interregional
research cooperation; strengthening existing mechanisms for information
exchange; and promoting the development of traditional and indigenous
technologies.
12. IFAD target groups consist of small farmers, indigenous peoples, nomadic
pastoralists, artisanal fishermen and other groups who live in the last
remaining areas of high biodiversity and are increasingly recognized as key
actors in its management. In collaboration with its partners, IFAD is
increasingly financing a new generation of projects in developing countries to
address the interface between poverty and biodiversity management, with the
aim of alleviating poverty, increasing food production and improving
nutrition, while conserving biodiversity. In its poverty alleviation
projects, IFAD seeks to address such issues as the displacement or loss of
land races and wild crop relatives important to small farmers; the optimal use
of minor food and medicinal plants; the management of biodiversity by local
peoples to ensure that they benefit from its protection; and research and
training into specific agro-systems, traditional crops, biological pest
control and the socio-economic and technological aspects of sustainable
agriculture, particularly in marginal and resource-poor areas that have not
been reached by the green revolution.
13. IMO is carrying out an analysis of the implications of Agenda 21
(including chapter 15, "Conservation of biological diversity") for the IMO.
Maritime traffic was recognized to have an impact upon marine biodiversity.
The IMO work on pollution prevention, the identification of "special areas",
particularly "sensitive sea areas" of unique or unusual ecological
significance to be avoided by shipping, ships' routing schemes and on ballast
water discharges, is expected to make an important contribution to
biodiversity conservation.
14. UNCTAD activities on biodiversity are related mainly to the
implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity. The main objective
is to contribute to the design and implementation of economic policies and
measures ensuring that developing countries attain economic benefits from the
full use of the Convention. The main activities centre around its programmes
on natural resources management and its impact on the conservation and
sustainable use of biological diversity (to ensure that commodity production
and trade are consistent with and promote environmentally sound management of
natural resources and the conservation and sustainable use of biological
diversity); capturing and expanding economic benefits, including through
international trade, through the conservation and sustainable use of
biological diversity (to assist developing countries in capturing the full
value of their biodiversity through the expansion of the production and
exports of goods based on natural resources whose production does not induce
biodiversity losses); the internalization of costs and resource values linked
to biodiversity (to ensure that biological resources are adequately valued);
and the access and transfer of technologies related to the conservation and
sustainable use of biological diversity.
15. ECA provides advisory services and support to its member States on
agriculture and rural development policies, planning and programming, with a
focus on measures for the conservation of natural forests and their
biodiversity, desertification and the related conservation of biodiversity,
the rehabilitation of degraded ecosystems and green belts in targeted
countries, and the strengthening of regional cooperation programmes for the
optimum and sustainable use of inland and marine fisheries. Within the
framework of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN),
ECA supports biodiversity-related activities.
16. A joint ESCWA/FAO study on wildlife protection and development,
involving seven ESCWA countries, is being carried out for presentation at the
Ministerial Conference on the theme "Management and sustainable development of
dry land in the Arab World". Future ESCWA activities will place emphasis on
surveying biological resources in the region, developing methodologies for the
conservation of biological resources suited to the ecological systems in the
region and promoting the formulation of national biodiversity policies and
strategies and the improvement of relevant legislation and enforcement
measures. However, ESCWA and its member countries require substantive
financial resources to implement biodiversity-related activities.
17. A major result of the ECE species conservation programme was its
adoption in 1991 of the European Red List of Globally Threatened Animals and
Plants. As a follow-up, the senior advisers to ECE Governments on
environmental and water problems adopted in 1992 the Code of Practice for the
Conservation of Threatened Animals and Plants and other Species of
International Significance, which provides comprehensive guidelines to
Governments for maintaining biological diversity within their jurisdiction and
promoting the conservation of flora and fauna in their habitats.
18. Currently, ECE activities on biological diversity are related to the
implementation of the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary
Watercourses and International Lakes (Helsinki, 1992). The Convention
contains specific obligations to prevent, control and reduce transboundary
impact, including adverse effects on flora and fauna. As a first step,
guidelines on the ecosystem approach in water management were adopted in 1993.
19. The Joint FAO/ECE Working Party on Relations between Agriculture and the
Environment currently examines various aspects and national practices related
to biological diversity and landscape protection as part of its work-plan
element entitled Economic, legal, technological and regulatory measures for
the promotion of environmentally sustainable agriculture and production of
healthy food". A revised synthesis study on this subject was considered in
October 1994 with a view to preparing draft recommendations for submission to
the ECE Committee on Agriculture and the FAO European Commission on
Agriculture.
2. Data and information
20. Decision-making for the protection of biological diversity should be
based on adequate and precise biological, socio-economic and environmental
data that can be obtained and made available through identification,
monitoring and the exchange of information. A current and reliable
description of the status of biodiversity and of the processes and activities
that have or are likely to have adverse impacts on biodiversity is fundamental
to good management and sustainable development. Therefore, the establishment
of in-country information networks or other information exchange mechanisms is
a necessary component of a country's biodiversity protection. In order to
ensure that such information is comparable and transferable, uniform
information standards and monitoring methodologies should be established.
21. Up-to-date quantitative and qualitative data gathering and analysis in a
systematic and comprehensive manner will underpin all types of activities for
biodiversity conservation. Decisions about which ecosystems, species, strains
or populations should be conserved should be based on objective criteria,
since the blanket conservation of the totality of biological diversity is
neither economically feasible nor technically possible. For most countries,
this will require the development of analytic tools for enumerating,
describing and assessing the status of, trends in, and distribution of their
biological diversity; identifying the threats to that diversity; assessing
current capacities; collecting socio-economic data useful for evaluating the
costs and benefits of conserving and sustainably using those resources; and
identifying gaps in knowledge and potential conflicts.
22. Compiling, determining and collating such data will necessitate the
development of standard data-collection and harmonized processing
methodologies, the production of national inventories and the development of
databases, as well as the gathering of new data through research and
monitoring as a part of a dynamic process. Such an undertaking will also
provide the baseline against which the efforts of nations to implement
relevant provisions of Agenda 21 and the Convention on Biological Diversity
can be measured, and will enhance the monitoring and assessment capability of
countries and the development of indicators for sustainable development. The
acquisition, organization and analysis of information as a tool for
decision-making must be issue-based and guided by specific objectives.
23. Perhaps most important in the area of data and information is the
steadily increasing pace of the preparation of biodiversity country
assessments, strategies and action plans. The primary objective of the
country studies programme initiated by UNEP is to assist national Governments
to identify, in the light of social, economic, environmental and other
objectives, the basic needs and levels of effective conservation, including
the rational use of national biological resources and the necessary supportive
measures and costs to meet those needs, as well as the benefits associated
with the implementation of those measures. The country studies are also
expected to (a) provide an overview of the status of biological diversity, in
terms of present knowledge, conservation efforts and future conservation needs
and costs; (b) institutionalize national biodiversity conservation strategies
and action plans to be carried out in concert with national, regional and
international institutions, and within the framework of Agenda 21 and the
Convention on Biological Diversity; (c) provide a basis for establishing
priority areas of biological diversity conservation, and for national
environmental planning and resource use; (d) identify or develop techniques
and methodologies for estimating the costs and benefits of the conservation of
biological diversity; (e) enhance the national capacity to assess the direct
and indirect benefits, investment costs and basic funding needs of
biodiversity conservation and its rational use; (f) develop understanding
among decision makers, educators, economists, social scientists and the
general public of the importance of safeguarding biological diversity, and
engage their support in this area; and (g) secure additional parties to the
Convention on Biological Diversity, and promote the effective implementation
of other biodiversity-related international and regional agreements and action
plans.
24. As a major contribution to mobilizing the scientific community to help
provide a solid basis for further decision-making and follow-up to the
Convention on Biological Diversity and Agenda 21, UNEP initiated the Global
Biodiversity Assessment, with funding from GEF, with the aim of providing an
independent, critical, peer-reviewed scientific analysis of the current
issues, theories and views regarding the main global aspects of biodiversity.
The assessment will serve as a basis for decision-making to meet the
objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity and Agenda 21; it will
also be an important tool for the scientific body of the Convention. The
potential audience of the Assessment is large and includes international,
regional and national environmental organizations, both governmental and
non-governmental, as well as policy makers and scientists working in the field
of biodiversity. The main text of the Assessment and a policy maker's summary
is expected to be ready by the second half of 1995.
25. To improve the availability of reliable up-to-date information to
support biodiversity planning and management in developing countries, UNEP,
with support from GEF, launched a project to assist developing countries and
the economies in transition in building their information capabilities and in
transferring appropriate technologies and skills in information management to
organize, maintain and use data generated under the country studies process.
26. The interim secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity is
compiling a list of databases of relevance to the Convention, identifying
their gaps and linkages. A catalogue will be prepared, updated regularly and
widely distributed. A similar activity was initiated to compile information
on scientific programmes and international cooperation.
27. In addition, FAO in collaboration with UNEP supported the establishment
of global and regional data banks on livestock and poultry genetic resources;
a coastal resource atlas was produced using GIS as a management tool for
coastal regions (UNEP); the establishment of the Global Biodiversity
Information Network (BIN21) was initiated (UNEP/Tropical Database, Brazil);
and the first edition of the World Watch List for Domestic Animal Diversity
and four volumes of the bulletin Animal Genetic Resources Information were
released (FAO/UNEP).
28. UNESCO is developing its own electronic network and information service
on biosphere reserves and ecological sciences (MABNet), as well as its own
database on national and cultural world heritage sites.
29. WCMC continued to compile and update substantial databases on habitats
and threatened animals and plants for the red data books and biodiversity
status reports that it publishes. WMO, through its Agricultural Meteorology
Programme, assists its members in improving their capabilities in the
application of meteorological and climatological information to agricultural
production (food, forestry and fisheries), and thus contributes to the
conservation and use of biodiversity, especially in marginal and severe
climatic conditions.
30. WMO, jointly with FAO and recently with UNEP, organized practical
on-the-spot training using mini or hand-held computers on the application of
agro-meteorological data and information for effective planning and management
of water for sustainable irrigated crop production. WMO also organized
jointly with EPPO and NAPPO symposia and workshops to give practical training
in the use of meteorological data in the fight against pest and diseases, in
reducing the level of undesired chemicals and in improving the quality of
agricultural produce. Activities to counter locust swarms have been expanded
to include case studies on the successful use of meteorological data in desert
locust control. Efforts are being made to create monitoring operations
through the acquisition and installation of equipment for meteorological
observations, including remote sensing and collaboration with PRIFAs. A
publication on the application of agro-meteorological information for desert
locusts control has been issued. WMO has also been participating in a number
of activities to promote the use of meteorological and hydrological
information to protect forests and desert-land ecosystems and thus contribute
to the conservation of biodiversity.
31. Drought and desertification are serious threats to many species,
especially in dry and semi-arid areas. As a contribution to the conservation
of these threatened species, WMO, in collaboration with UNEP, prepared a
comprehensive report entitled "Interactions of desertification and climate",
which was one of the many inputs made by WMO to the negotiating process of the
Convention on Biological Diversity. The report is being published as a joint
WMO/UNEP publication.
32. WMO, in cooperation with the University of Nebraska, held training
seminars on drought analyses and on drought assessment, preparedness and
management in Africa and Latin America.
3. International and regional cooperation and coordination
33. If the world's biodiversity is to be monitored, conserved and used in a
sustainable way, international and regional cooperation as a means of linking
and sharing experience and information is essential. This was envisaged in
chapter 15 of Agenda 21, which calls for the promotion of cooperation between
the parties to relevant international conventions and action plans with the
aim of strengthening and coordinating efforts to conserve biodiversity and the
sustainable use of biological resources (para. 15.7 (e)), as well as the
promotion of improved international coordination of measures for conserving
and managing endangered/non-pest migratory species (para. 15.7 (g)). A number
of programmes are under way, as follows:
(a) A number of relevant global networks are being established/
strengthened for enhancing global access to biodiversity information,
including the Biodiversity Information Network (BIN21), MSDN, BINAS and IRRO;
(b) The Convention on Biological Diversity is expected to support the
establishment or strengthening of networks for technical and scientific
cooperation, and capacity-building for the implementation of the provisions of
the Convention.
34. Within the biodiversity country studies framework, countries are being
assisted in the development of baseline surveys and inventories of national
biodiversity (UNEP), the development of economic tools to determine costs, and
benefits of biodiversity conservation and their distribution (UNEP).
35. FAO, UNEP, UNESCO, IPGRI and others support regional and global
programmes for the surveying, collection, evaluation and conservation of
animal, plant and microbial genetic resources, and training in relevant
fields.
36. The following systems and programmes are already operational: global
networks of gene banks housing the world base collection of crop genetic
resources (CGIAR/IPGRI/FAO); regional MIRCENs (UNEP, UNESCO); UNESCO-MAB/GEF
protected areas network for biodiversity conservation in central Europe; the
Northern Sciences Network (UNESCO-MAB); Global Ocean Ecosystem Dynamics
(UNESCO); the South-South Cooperation Programme for the Conservation of
Tropical Ecosystems (UNESCO/UNU); the China Biosphere Reserves Network
(UNESCO-MAB); marine laboratory networks (UNESCO); and the international
environmental education programme (UNEP/UNESCO).
37. The Environmental Action Programme for Central and Eastern European
Countries was adopted by the European Ministers of the Environment (Lucerne,
Switzerland, 1993); the Programme includes a chapter on the conservation of
biological diversity.
38. The Second Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe
(Helsinki, 1993) adopted guidelines for the conservation of the biodiversity
of European forests.
39. Following the adoption of resolution 2 at the Ministerial Conference for
the Protection of Forests in Europe (Strasbourg, France, 1990) and its
endorsement at the Second Ministerial Conference (Helsinki, 1993), IPGRI and
FAO have jointly developed the European Forest Genetic Resources Programme
(EUFORGEN).
40. CGIAR, which has traditionally focused on crop genetic resources,
decided in 1991 to expand its mandate to include forestry and agro-forestry.
As part of this resource, the Centre for International Forestry Research
(CIPOR), based in Bogor, Indonesia, focuses on natural ecosystems and their
management, as well as plantations; the International Centre for Research in
Agro-Forestry (ICRAF), based in Nairobi, looks at the role of agro-forestry
and specifically at the adoption of multipurpose trees in sustainable farming
systems; and the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI),
based in Rome, concentrates on the conservation and utilization of the genetic
resources of agricultural crops and forest tree species.
41. The Council of Europe Convention on the Conservation of European
Wildlife and Natural Habitats was adopted in Bern, Switzerland, on 19
September 1979 and entered into force in 1982. The European Union Habitat
Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and Wild Fauna and Flora
entered into force in 1994.
42. The Lucerne Declaration of 30 April 1993 adopted by the Second
Pan-European Ministerial Conference on the theme "Environment for Europe"
contains a section on the conservation of biodiversity. The Maastricht
Declaration of 12 November 1993 of the Conference, entitled "Conserving
Europe's natural heritage: towards a European ecological network", considers
the development of a European biological and landscape diversity strategy.
43. The Monaco Declaration, entitled "The Role of the Bern Convention in the
Implementation of Worldwide International Instruments for the Protection of
Biodiversity", was adopted on 28 September 1994 by the Intergovernmental
Symposium on the theme "UNCED, the Convention on Biological Diversity and the
Bern Convention: the next steps". The participants acknowledged that
regional international organizations should act to favour the application of
world wide international instruments for the protection of biodiversity, in
particular the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Rio Declaration on
Environment and Development, the Non-legally Binding Authoritative Statement
of Principles Global Consensus on the Management, Conservation and Sustainable
Development of All Types of Forests, and Agenda 21. They also acknowledged
that the Council of Europe has a fundamental role to play in the
implementation at the regional level of principles and obligations adopted on
a global level, and that the Bern Convention constitutes an instrument of
major importance for the conservation of biological diversity at the regional
level by reasons of its objectives and its geographical coverage. Several
recommendations on the scientific, technical, strategic and financial aspects
of the question were adopted within this framework by the participants.
44. The following regional meetings were organized with UNEP support to
promote the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity: the
ASEAN countries' Conference on the Convention on Biological Diversity and the
Bangalore Declaration (1994); the African Ministerial Conference on the
Convention on Biological Diversity (1994); the Baltic States Meeting on the
Convention on Biological Diversity (1994); and workshops on the Convention on
Biological Diversity in Latin America and the Caribbean (1994).
45. The following activities are under way: the production of an eastern
African coastal and marine environment database and atlas (UNEP); the
protection of East African Biodiversity (FAO/UNEP); the creation of global
terrestrial observing systems (FAO, ICSU, UNEP, UNESCO, WMO); the conservation
of critical coral reef habitats in the Red Sea (UNEP-GEF); the creation of a
regional activity centre for the protection of biodiversity/Black Sea action
plan (UNEP-GEF); and the protection of the marine biodiversity of the Caspian
Sea (UNEP-GEF).
46. Action plans for the management of the Mediterranean Monk Seal and the
conservation of Mediterranean cetaceans and marine turtles have been initiated
by UNEP.
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Date last posted: 2 December 1999 13:24:30
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