G7-Elmau-Progress-Report-2015-Biodiversity-A-vital-foundation-for-sustainable-development

G7 ELMAU PROGRESS REPORT 41United States (US) recently established the Pacific RemoteIslands Marine National Monument, resulting in a protectedarea that covers more than 1 million km². France implementeda strategy in 2014 that will result in the creationof terrestrial protected areas as well as marine protectedareas that cover 20 percent of its land areas and 16 percentof its marine areas.Abroad, Germany is very active, supporting the establishmentand management of protected areas of an estimated929,000 km² in 40 countries worldwide (see Example 4.1).Japan is working on capacity-building of park officers andcommunities in and around national parks (see Example4.2).Example 4.1 Strengthening cross-border conservation (Germany)As ecosystems are not confined within administrative boundaries, cross-border cooperation is essential fortheir effective protection. In southern Africa one of the world’s largest transboundary protected areacomplexes has been established under the name of KAZA (Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area).The area combines 36 separate sites in 5 countries, covers an area the size of Sweden and is home to 44 percent ofAfrica’s elephants. This African initiative aims at protecting biodiversity while at the same time generating income forlocal communities and securing peace and stability in the region. German support facilitates cooperation between theinvolved countries to manage the area jointly, to develop sustainable tourism, to improve anti-poaching measures, toshare lessons learned and to foster cross-border initiatives at the local level. Addressing conservation challenges acrossborders is an important strategy also for the protection of marine biodiversity. In the Pacific, Indonesia, Malaysia andthe Philippines have agreed on a trilateral action plan for the Sulu Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion. Germany supports theirefforts to promote sustainable fisheries, to improve the livelihoods of coastal communities and to create networks ofmarine protected areas. In the Caribbean, small island states are pooling resources for marine protected area networksthrough conservation trust funds established with German financial cooperation. Source: BMZ and BMUB (2014)Example 4.2 Strategy for Strengthening Biodiversity Conservation throughAppropriate National Park Management and Human Resources Development Project (Japan)National Parks in Indonesia are not always functionally managed. Moreover, the drastic designation ofareas covered in national parks creates conflicts between the management of national parks and localcommunities. This is due to lack of coordination with those who use the natural resources, mainly the local communities.The increasing disruptions from the usage of natural resources by these local communities and newlyimmigrated groups threaten the flora and fauna in the parks. These conflicts are created not only by the users’lack of awareness or poverty, but also the lack of awareness and knowledge on the management side. Under thesecircumstances, the Indonesian government requested a technical cooperation project on the development of acomprehensive system for capacity development of human resources conducted by the Centre for Forestry Educationand Training. This project aims at enhancing collaborative management in the national parks in Indonesiaby creating capacity for park officers and other stakeholders in planning and management.http://www2.jica.go.jp/en/evaluation/pdf/2012_0600341_4.pdf