Earth Today | Caribbean biodiversity gets investment boost
Published:Sunday | March 23, 2025 | 9:56 PM
THERE IS some good news for efforts to halt nature loss in the Caribbean, with the announcement that the investment portfolio of the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) is to be expanded.
CEPF – a collaborative effort of l’Agence Française de Développement, Conservation International, the European Union, Fondation Hans Wilsdorf, the Global Environment Facility, the Government of Japan and the World Bank – provides financial and technical assistance to civil society organisations from developing countries and transitioning economies in support of their conservation work.
According to information out of the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI), 11 Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA) are to be added, bringing to 43 the number of KBAs supported by the CEPF. CANARI is the regional implementation team for the CEPF’s five-year investment in the Caribbean islands biodiversity hotspot between 2021 and 2026.
KBAs, meanwhile, are sites assessed to be of global significance for the conservation of biodiversity and which meets criteria including that they are home to threatened species, support large numbers of a species’ global population and functions in support of a species’ biological processes such as breeding and migration.
“The newly added KBAs are spread across five Caribbean countries and are home to several rare and endangered species, many of which are found nowhere else on Earth. While 10 of the new KBAs are in countries where CEPF has already been active, the new addition in the Commonwealth of Dominica marks the start of CEPF’s involvement in this country under the current investment,” CANARI noted in a March 17 news release.
Among the KBAs is the Negril and Surroundings KBA in Jamaica, together with Graham’s Harbour National Park in The Bahamas; Morne Diablotin National Park KBA in Dominica; as well as Monumento Natural Las Caobas, Reserva Biológica Loma Charco Azul, Parque NacionalSierra de Neyba, and Parque Nacional Sierra Martín García in the Dominican Republic.
Also included is Iyanola and Grande Anse, Esperance, and Fond D’Or KBA in Saint Lucia; Colonaire Forest Reserve, Dalaway (Buccament Watershed), and Richmond Forest Reserve in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
“To date, CEPF has supported 44 projects, benefiting species and ecosystems across 23 KBAs in Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,” the release said.
It notes among the benefits of the CEPF’s intervention improvement of protected area management, enhancement of landscape connectivity, conservation of species, strengthening of enabling conditions for biodiversity protection, and the capacity-building of civil society organisations (CSOs).
“We are excited about the contribution CEPF is making to conservation in the Caribbean Islands Biodiversity Hotspot, and this expansion strengthens our support to the region,” said CEPF Caribbean Grant Director, Daniel Rothberg.
“These additional funds will allow us to have a greater impact through support for on-the-ground action by civil society, from habitat restoration and species protection to climate resilience initiatives, ensuring more effective conservation efforts. Additionally, they will help foster stronger collaboration among conservation groups, building robust regional networks,” he added.
Nicole Brown, CEPF Caribbean region implementation team manager at CANARI for CEPF, noted that the investment is timely.
“As Caribbean biodiversity faces increasing threats from habitat destruction, climate change, and human activities, this expanded investment will help ensure the long-term restoration and protection of our region’s unique ecosystems,” she said.
“We are pleased that CANARI can continue to play its intermediary and support role for the CEPF Caribbean Islands investment.”
The CEPF’s actions come as countries do battle with the triple planetary crisis of nature loss, climate change and pollution.