Title: Reporting Linkages Among Biodiversityrelated Conventions
1Reporting Linkages Among Biodiversity-related
Conventions
- UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre
2National reporting information
- Conventions need well-organised and reliable
information on implementation - Information enables decision-making
- Reporting fulfils the basic information needs of
conventions
3National reporting the problem for governments
- The burden of producing a range of reports
- Lack of national coordination
- Overlap and duplication of work between different
reports - Scarce resources, especially in developing
countries
4National reporting
- Each Contracting Party shall present to the
Conference of the Parties reports on measures
which it has taken for the implementation of the
provisions of this Convention and their
effectiveness in meeting the objectives of the
Convention. -
CBD article 26
5- The Five Global Biodiversity-Related Conventions
Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
Convention on Migratory Species (CMS)
World Heritage Convention (WHC)
Ramsar Convention on Wetlands
6Existing reporting linkages between
biodiversity-related conventions CBD and CMS
- CBD COP 6, decision VI/20 On cooperation with
Convention on Migratory Species - The COP urges Parties to report through their
national reports on the extent to which they
address migratory species at the national level,
and on their cooperation with other range states.
7Existing reporting linkages between
biodiversity-related conventions CBD and Ramsar
- 3rd joint work plan of Ramsar Convention and CBD
(2002) - the Ramsar Bureau will contribute to the CBD
work and liaison group on national reporting and
report formats so as to identify appropriate
themes and topics for collaborative reporting, - The CBD Secretariat and Ramsar Bureau will seek
ways of sharing experience and approaches to the
handling and analysis of National Reports, and
make available analyses, as appropriate, to
support the work of the Conventions and their
subsidiary bodies.
8Harmonization of reporting information
management
- UNEP 5 conventions Feasibility Study (1998) on
harmonization of information management - Oct 2000 Workshop in Cambridge, UK
- 2001-2003 Pilot projects in 4 countries
9Pilot projects
- Ghana Linking national reporting to reporting on
State of the Environment (SoE) - Indonesia Modular reporting
- Panama Regional support to national information
management reporting - Seychelles Consolidated reporting
10Ghana Linking national reporting to SoE
reporting - the model
- Handling of data on biodiversity by Biodiversity
Commission - Preparation of national reports to conventions
- Submitting of datasets to Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) - EPA to use for SoE report
11Indonesia Modular reporting
12Panama Regional support to information
management and national reporting
- A (sub)regional institution (e.g. UNEP-ROLAC,
CCAD) could assist governments with information
management and reporting providing, amongst
others - information
- IT support
- meeting arrangements.
13Seychelles Consolidated reporting
- National Agency A National Agency B National
Agency C - National Biodiversity Commission
One national report
Convention A
Convention B
Convention C
14Seychelles Consolidated reporting
- Prepare one consolidated report that satisfies
the obligations of a range of conventions - Justification A range of issues common to all
conventions (international cooperation,
identification monitoring, in situ and ex situ
conservation, sustainable use, etc)
15Problems for harmonization, as identified by
pilot projects
- International
- Different reporting cycles between conventions
- Different reporting formats
- National
- Lack of national capacity and resources
- Many different national biodiversity databases
- Lack of national coordination
16Recommendations from the pilot projects
international
- Harmonize reporting formats between conventions -
take CBD as a start - Better synchronise reporting cycles between
conventions - Develop a Biodiversity Reporting Manual
- Develop (sub)regional support to national
reporting
17Recommendations from the pilot projects
international (cont)
- Share terminologies (glossaries, definitions,
abbreviations, taxonomy) between conventions - Develop/improve joint websites of conventions
- Further test the different approaches to
harmonized reporting - Provide resources
18Recommendations from the pilot projects national
- Review institutional/administrative arrangements
for conventions/SoE responsibilities - Establish a national coordination mechanism
- Establish a national biodiversity
database/clearing-house mechanism
19Recommendations from the pilot projects national
(cont)
- Establish on-line reporting
- Develop information modules useful for more than
one convention SoE - Provide an operational framework for stakeholder
involvement
20What for the Rio Conventions?Mandate for
harmonization of reporting
- World Summit on Sustainable Development Plan of
Implementation, para 42c Encourage effective
synergies between the Convention on Biological
Diversity and other multilateral environmental
agreements, inter alia, through the development
of joint plans and programmes - UNCCD Explanatory Note and Help Guide for
affected country Parties ICCD/CRIC(3)/INF.3,
para 30 Experience gained during the
preparation of similar reports under the
conventions on climate change and biodiversity
can also be used to promote synergism.
21What for the Rio Conventions? (cont)
- Some overlap between CBD and UNCCD
- biodiversity of dry and sub-humid lands
- agricultural biodiversity
- protected areas
- UNFCCC potentially rather separate
- Reporting focus on greenhouse gas emissions
22Starting point
- Element C1 of joint work programme between CBD
and UNCCD - The two secretariats will seek to identify
harmonized formats of reporting in compliance
with their respective obligations in line with
the programme of work under the CBD on the
biodiversity of dry and sub-humid lands, as well
as the ongoing work to harmonize reporting under
the CBD with that of other biodiversity-related
conventions.
23Potential approach
- Identify themes common to UNCCD and CBD, as in
the joint work programme - Develop joint questions for reports
- Explore extension to UNFCCC
- Discuss in the Joint Liaison Group of the Rio
Conventions
24Potential approach (cont)
- Test in a small number of developing countries,
with a focus on - joint information management
- demonstration sites
- Link to the process under the biodiversity-related
conventions, building on Memoranda of
Understanding between UNCCD CMS, UNCCD Ramsar