Coastal and Marine Biodiversity Management Project

The project will test and refine an approach to achieve sustainable economic development of coastal zone resources through a strategic development planning process that integrates their ecological, social and physical values, and balances the varying interests involved in their management. The approach will be multi-pronged, and will include: (a) strategic spatial planning that fully integrates conservation with regional development; (b) establishment and strengthened protection of key marine conservation areas and initiation of conservation-oriented community activities in and around them; (c) capacity building of key government and non-government stakeholders responsible for biodiversity protection; (d) public awareness raising; and (e) establishing best practice for environmentally and biodiversity friendly development. The GEF grant will support the preparation of a biodiversity overlay to the strategic spatial development plan; protection of globally significant areas and species; establishment of a related monitoring system; integration of global biodiversity specifications into a tender for a private sector concession; and capacity building for conservation and management of biodiversity.