Biodiversity & Forest
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The Biodiversity and Forests thematic action lies in the recognition of African ecosystems as vital providers of essential services to humanity and critical components of the planet's intricate system. Sustainable management of ecosystem resources passes through knowledge-based, concerted, and coordinated efforts at the global, national and regional level. Many challenges are faced in this quest for sustainability, in particular:
Closing the gap: Research predominantly originates from the North, leaving Southern research centers underdeveloped.
Strengthening excellence: Existing African centers of excellence require substantial investments to enhance their capacity.
Enhancing collaboration: Sharing knowledge within the scientific community, with practitioners, and policymakers remains insufficient.
The Biodiversity and Forest thematic action supports the consolidation and long-term sustainability of initiatives aimed at leveraging data, information, and capacity building for decision-making. From global to local scales, aims to track progress towards conservation targets, creating and managing data and information for informed decision-making.
Regional Centres of Excellence
In partnership with DG-JRC, CIFOR-ICRAF spearheads a network of RCoEs dedicated to this cause: the Observatory for Biodiversity and Protected Areas in West Africa (OBAPAO) managed by the Centre de Suivi Écologique (CSE), the Central Africa Forest Observatory (OFAC) managed by COMIFAC Executive Secretariat and the Eastern & Southern Africa Regional Resouce Hub managed by The Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD).
