FP ANALYTICS SYNTHESIS REPORT

A People-Centered Approach to Conservation

Key Takeaways from the 2022 Africa Protected Areas Congress

From July 18 to 23, 2022, the first IUCN African Protected Areas Congress (APAC) in Kigali, Rwanda, was convened jointly by the government of Rwanda, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF). The inaugural Congress brought together more than 2,400 participants from 53 African and 27 other countries. Participants represented government, multilateral institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), indigenous and local communities, students, the private sector, and other interested parties, who convened to celebrate and discuss the future of Africa’s protected and conserved areas (PCAs).

Monica Medina, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, noted in a pre-recorded statement during the opening ceremony, “When it comes down to it, effective conservation involves governments working with businesses, NGOs, indigenous peoples, local communities, and other stakeholders to support livelihoods while maintaining and restoring ecosystems. Your efforts here at APAC are instrumental in the future of biodiversity in Africa. The United States looks forward to working with you to support conservation efforts.”

The Congress aimed to deepen commitment to sustainable growth, recognizing that the continent’s ecological and economic imperatives converge. A people-centered approach to conservation was at the forefront of the agenda, along with the empowerment of indigenous peoples, local communities, and youth as the custodians of Africa’s most treasured natural resources. Kaddu Sebunya, CEO and president of AWF, underscored the urgency of protecting these natural resources at the opening ceremony by observing, “It is the fate of these crucial landscapes and wildlife that will dictate the future of Africa and the Africa we will leave to the next generation.” 

One key outcome of the conference was the Kigali Call to Action for People and Nature, which is a commitment to take critical and immediate actions toward effective governance and management of Africa’s PCAs; address biodiversity, climate change, and health crises; and ensure the long-term resilience of the continent’s nature, livelihoods, and cultures. Through a series of plenary discussions, workshops, and trainings, stakeholders drew on their expertise to lay the foundation for a comprehensive plan to promote the well-being of Africa’s people, wildlife, and land and the role of conservation in the global fight against climate change. FP Analytics, with support from AWF, produced this synthesis report to distill key takeaways, specifically focusing on three panels featured on the robust, wide-ranging agenda of the 2022 African Protected Areas Conference. The synthesis report highlights conservation’s greatest challenges and opportunities, and underscores the African continent’s capacity for innovation and collaboration.

This synthesis report was produced by FP Analytics with support from the African Wildlife Foundation.

Participants

Hon. Lee White, Ministre des Eaux, des Forêts, de la Mer, de l’Environnement, Chargé du Plan Climat and du Plan d’Affectation des Terres (Minister of the Environment), Gabon

Juliette Biao Koudenoukpo, Executive Director, UN Forum on Forests

Amy Fraenkel, Executive Secretary, Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals

Alfred Oteng-Yeboah, Chair, Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)/ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) steering committee

Marco Lambertini, Director General, WWF International

Moderator: Shamila Nair-Bedouelle, Shamila Nair-Bedouelle, Assistant Director, General UNESCO

Overview

This panel assembled environmental experts from African governments and international organizations to discuss the socioeconomic value of protected and conserved areas, the role of PCAs in sustainable development and fighting climate change, and new approaches to global governance and cooperation. The panel emphasized the value of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) as both custodians of knowledge and frontline defenders in African land and wildlife conservation. To build resilience, protect the harmony of Africa’s ecosystems, and promote the continent’s economic growth, the experts offered recommendations such as a clearer political vision and leadership, intergenerational and transboundary collaboration, information sharing, consensus on the economic value of natural resources, and people-centered approaches to conservation.  

Key Takeaways

• There should be a mindset shift away from the perceived incompatibility between nature conservation and sustainable development. Accounting for natural resources demonstrates the competitiveness of conservation, even in the face of extractive economic forces. 
• Bringing nature closer to people, and people closer to the center of conservation, will socialize and empower them to own the conservation agenda, including tangible relevance to their livelihoods, and make them more effective participants in the fight against climate change.
• PCAs are potential economic engines for rural and national economies. Reinvesting revenue from PCAs back into those areas and communities will increase resilience and help unlock the full economic potential of the continent’s natural resources. This requires both effective management of PCAs and sustainable use practices. 

• ​​Increasing the number of PCAs is not sufficient to halt biodiversity loss, reduce poverty, or curb climate change. A more holistic approach will require significantly upscaling investment to close the funding gap that was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. 
• The continent provides the essential service of absorbing the world’s CO₂ emissions through its forests, yet it is not responsible for most of the world’s emissions. Africa’s voice should be amplified in the global climate change conversation to help address this imbalance and devise solutions that work for all. 
• Building on the successes of Africa’s trans-frontier conservation areas, increasing connectivity between PCAs within the continent and outside of its boundaries is necessary for effective restoration of biodiversity loss. Connected systems are better for resilience building and mitigating climate change. 

Participants

Claudine Uwera, Minister of State in Charge of Economic Planning in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning in Rwanda

Steffi Lemke, German Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety, and Consumer Protection

Paulo Gomes, Co-founder, New African Capital Partners, Former Executive Director at the World Bank

Mohamed Imam Bakarr, Lead Environmental Specialist GEF

Aurelia Micko, Director of Environment, Kenya and East Africa USAID

Chantal Marijnissen, Head of Unit for Environment, Sustainable and Natural Resources, European Commission

Teddy Mugabo, Chief Executive Officer, Rwanda Green Fund

Alain Liva Raharijaona, Executive Director of Madagascar Fund

Carsten Sandhop, Head of Division Governance and Resource Management, Southern African Department, KfW German Development Bank

Moderator: Charlotte Karibuhoye, Director and Head of Strategic Alliances, MAVA Foundation

Overview

This panel, composed of public- and private-sector experts from African and European countries, discussed the critical role of financing in combating biodiversity loss and climate change. The conservation of ecosystems requires persistent and coordinated effort and investment from public-private partnerships to keep pace with the evolving dangers of climate change. The panelists provided insights on strategies to incentivize the private sector and mobilize civil society to promote awareness and attract funding for conservation efforts. Panelists discussed immediate and short-term ways to close the financing gap, while also emphasizing the need for long-term strategies to combat protracted environmental crises.

Key Takeaways

• International financial architecture is crucial to combat and adapt to climate change and protect conservation areas. Leaders in Africa need to acknowledge the importance of promoting equitable benefit-sharing to encourage more systematic funding from private-sector partners, in addition to utilizing public funds. Private investors should be made aware of the environmental, development, and socio-economic benefits of biodiversity conservation.
• Civil society and community-based organizations play an important role in the protection of biodiversity. Local groups and organizations have first-hand knowledge of the environmental challenges facing their communities and how to manage and fund the conservation of their ecosystems sustainably. Often excluded from the decision-making process, community leaders and organizers must be acknowledged as key partners in the development of projects. Without their input, the scope and severity of environmental issues will not be understood, and areas that are most vulnerable will not be safeguarded.
• The conservation of ecosystems is a long-term issue that requires a long-term strategy. A pan-African trust fund is a critical mechanism to mobilize resources to mitigate increasing biodiversity loss. A trust fund will establish funding priorities at the government level and effectively coordinate the financial process to ensure that funds reach the most vulnerable areas.

Participants

Lucy Mulenkei, Executive Director, Indigenous Information Network

Jimmiel Mandima, Vice President, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW)

Jennifer Mohamed-Katerere, Independent Human Rights and Environmental Law Expert

Brian Child, Regional Councilor, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

Solange Bandiaky-Badii, Global Coordinator of Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI) and President of the Rights and Resources Group, Senegal

Hon. Collins Nzovu, Minister of Green Economy and Environment, Zambia

Lesle Jansen, Head of Resource Africa, South Africa

Moderator: Hon. Emmanuel Ugirashebuja, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Republic of Rwanda

Overview

In the Leadership Dialogue on Upholding Rights, Promoting Good Governance and Equity, panelists placed IPLCs at the forefront of conservation to discuss the historical injustices committed against them, their relationships with governments, NGOs, donors and governance processes, and how to further elevate their voices in both policymaking and implementation. There was a strong call for the African Protected Areas Congress to move toward the legal recognition of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities’ rights as a first step in achieving effective participation by all stakeholders in the climate and biodiversity crises. The experts reiterated the need for community-based resource management and equitable benefit-sharing to promote good governance. 

Key Takeaways

• Governments and NGOs must earn back the trust of IPLCs after decades of abuse and disenfranchisement. IPLCs are the conservators of Africa’s lands and wildlife, and for them to deliver effective management, they need to be part of the decision-making process.
• International NGOs should advocate for and recognize the legal rights of indigenous peoples to their lands to help build agency within local communities. This will be the first step in transforming policy from an imposition upon IPLCs to a consensual commitment with them.
• Respecting the rights of IPLCs means recognizing the knowledge capacity they hold, letting them contribute to policy-making processes, allowing them to manage PCAs, and helping to build bridges among IPLCs, governments, and NGOs.
• The private sector needs to be involved in meaningful dialogues to produce concrete solutions. There also need be institutional monitoring and evaluation of stakeholder activities to ensure progress and respect for the land, wildlife, and local communities.
• Co-designing projects to identify competencies among the local community creates strong alliances with IPLCs. Equitable benefits-sharing leads to greater empowerment of IPLCs and increased capacity for transformational, sustainable conservation.

Summary Takeaways

• While African countries consume just a fraction of the world’s fossil fuels, their vast ecological wealth and unique natural ecosystems are critical to climate change adaptation and mitigation. Africa is making considerable progress on sustainable development and climate change initiatives such as Agenda 2063, 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the 2021–2027 African Union Green Recovery Action Plan, and Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. The continent is also on track to achieve the worldwide initiative 30 by 30, which aims to designate 30 percent of the Earth’s surface area as PCAs by 2030. The Kigali Call to Action is a key guiding instrument for the Congress’s most pressing policy aims related to these initiatives, a collaborative platform for global partnerships, and a signal of Africa’s commitment to prioritizing conservation and climate agendas.
• One resounding message of the inaugural IUCN African Protected Areas Congress is that Africa has more work to do to deliver sustainable, equitable, and fair economic growth for all while protecting and preserving their ecosystems. An estimated 1.2 billion jobs around the world depend directly on healthy ecosystems, and many of them are in Africa. The process of restoring natural resources must include IPLCs, who are most vulnerable to the negative effects of climate change and biodiversity loss and most capable of reversing the harm because of their synergistic relationship to Africa’s lands.
• One persistent recommendation from experts throughout the week was a people-centered, community-based model of resource management. This model must come from Africans to be most effective, as many participants echoed concerns over continuing to allow foreign prescriptions and interference in domestic conservation efforts. As former Prime Minister of Ethiopia Hailemariam Desalegn Boshe stated in the opening plenary discussion, “We Africans, we should be at the driving seat. We shouldn’t wait for international NGOs to come and work for us.”
• A community-based model of conservation requires reinvesting income from PCAs back into the surrounding communities, accounting for natural capital services, and insisting on equitable participation by all stakeholders. Increased private and public long-term investments could help close the funding gap exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as fiscal contributions from civil service organizations and NGOs.
• Effective local governance will be essential to elevate IPLC voices in the decision-making process. Partnerships between stakeholders should promote knowledge cooperation, work toward large-scale data monitoring systems, and include mechanisms for evaluating progress periodically.
• A holistic approach to biodiversity loss, conservation, and sustainable development needs to involve intergenerational dialogue that both honors the traditions of Africa’s communities and innovates and adapts to the evolving reality of climate change. The Youth Declaration was a central element of the conference, underscoring the pivotal role of younger generations in conservation efforts: “We, the youth, are leaders of today, partners in the vision, not only commentators but capacity builders ready to stand in any gap and be the solution.” With good governance, political commitment and vision, and respect for one another, Africa will achieve its ambitious agenda for conservation and sustainable growth.