Japan to invest 1 bn Yen for nature's cause in 6 years
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Montreal: At the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) of the Convention on Biological Diversity in Montreal, Japan announced the expected funding of one billion Japanese yen in six years for nature's cause.
The Japanese Ministry of Environment, the Keidanren Committee on Nature Conservation, UNDP, and other partners proclaimed the launch of the fourth phase of the Community Development and Knowledge Management for the Satoyama Initiative, for which the said funding will be made.
The Satoyama Initiative was introduced at the CBD COP10 in Japan's Nagoya as a global effort to contribute and achieve the vision of "societies in harmony with nature. This is through integrated approaches for biodiversity conservation and sustainable development in socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes around the world.
Community Development and Knowledge Management is the flagship programme of the Satoyama Initiative. It was started in 2011 to promote the sustainable use of biodiversity and natural resources with local communities.
During the first and second phases, between 2011 and 2018, the programme backed more than 2000 related community-based projects in 20 countries. Phase three started in 2019, has focused on the institutionalisation and sustainable financing of landscape and seascape conservation activities.
Japan had contributed $10.5 million in the last decade through the CBD's Japan Biodiversity Fund, and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP implemented the Community Development and Knowledge Management (COMDEKS) programme using the funds. CBD Secretariat and United Nations University -- Institute of Advanced Studies of Sustainability- also partnered in these programmes.
Grants are being delivered through the Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme in the participating countries, providing a locally appropriate and community-driven mechanism to reach civil society and communities.
"COMDEKS Phase 4 is the culmination of a decade of partnership on the Satoyama Initiative, and we are committed to further supporting the sustainable use of biodiversity in developing countries for the implementation of the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework and also contribute to the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration and Sustainable Development Goals," says Akihiro Nishimura, Minister of Environment, in Japan.