Phase Two of Caribbean resources conservation programme launched
RENEWED COLLABORATION between the International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and The University of the West Indies (UWI) is seen as important for the effective management and good governance of protected areas in the Caribbean region, according to Viviana Sanchez, acting IUCN regional director for Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean.
The UWI and IUCN regional office has resumed a five-year collaboration supporting Caribbean countries to best manage and utilise important sea and land resources for the benefit of those who depend on them, ultimately contributing to the long-term conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
“We are pleased to be working closely with The University of West I ndies to improve the quality of data for protected areas in the Caribbean region, not only for information purposes, but also to facilitate the decision-making process in different sectors,” noted Sanchez.
The work is being implemented with support from the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of countries and the European Union through the Biodiversity and
“The BIOPAMA programme offers great potential for our region in the form of technical and financial assistance to build capacity in our citizens, who have oversight and management for the protected areas across our lands and shared sea spaces.”
Protected Areas Management (BIOPAMA) Programme.
BIOPAMA, through the Protected Areas Caribbean Gateway information platform, provides tools for data and information management services for improving the knowledge and capacity for protected area planning and decision making and funding opportunities for specific site-based actions.
REGIONAL BENEFITS
The programme is now in its second phase and will see it lasting through to 2023.
Meanwhile, pro vice-chancellor f or Graduate Studies and Research at the UWI Professor Dale Webber said that the BIOPAMA programme stands to benefit the region on many levels.
“The BIOPAMA programme offers great potential for our region in the form of technical and financial assistance to build capacity in our citizens who have oversight and management for the protected areas across our lands and shared sea spaces,” Webber said at the signing ceremony in Kingston, recently.
“I, therefore, look forward to lending my support and the resources of the UWI to BIOPAMA in this second implementing phase and expect increased access and agility with this multi-organisation alignment,” he added.
The programme in the Caribbean is coordinated by the IUCN Regional Office for Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean in collaboration with the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission and is hosted by the UWI.