Bearing in mind Articles 20 and 21 of the Convention,

Taking into account the guidance provided by the Conference of the Parties at its first, second and third meetings to the Global Environment Facility,

Decides to provide the following additional guidance to the Global Environment Facility in the provision of financial resources, in conformity with decisions I/2, II/6 and III/5 of the Conference of the Parties. In this regard, the Global Environment Facility shall provide financial resources to developing countries for country­driven activities and programmes, consistent with national priorities and objectives, recognizing that economic and social development and poverty eradication are the first and overriding priorities of developing countries:

The Global Environment Facility should:

1. Provide adequate and timely support for country­driven projects at national, regional and subregional levels addressing the issue of alien species in accordance with decision IV/1 C;

2. Provide financial resources for country-driven activities within the context of its operation programmes to participate in the Global Taxonomy Initiative which take into account as appropriate, elements of the Suggestions for Action contained in the annex to decision IV/1 D;

3. Within the context of implementing national biological diversity strategies and action plans, provide adequate and timely support to eligible projects which help Parties to develop and implement national, sectoral and cross­sectoral plans for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity of inland water ecosystems in accordance with decision IV/4;

4. In accordance with decision IV/7 and with Article 7 of the Convention and also within the context of implementing national biological diversity strategies and plans, provide adequate and timely financial support to Parties for projects and capacity-building activities for implementing the programme of work of forest biological diversity at the national, regional and subregional levels and the use of the clearing-house mechanism to include activities that contribute to halting and addressing deforestation, basic assessments and monitoring of forest biological diversity, including taxonomic studies and inventories, focusing on forest species, other important components of forest biological diversity and ecosystems under threat;

5. In accordance with decision IV/2:

(a) Support capacity­building activities and country­driven pilot projects focused on priority areas, as critical components in the implementation of the clearing­house mechanism at the national, subregional, biogeographic, and regional levels, both during and after the pilot phase;

(b) Provide, as appropriate, increased support, in the framework of country­driven projects to promote the objectives of the Convention, to establish and strengthen biodiversity information systems such as, inter alia, training, technology and processes related to the collection, organization, maintenance and updating of data and information and its communication to users through the clearing­house mechanism;

(c) Evaluate at the end of the clearing­house mechanism pilot phase the experience of the Global Environment Facility's support for developing countries' activities, to consider additional efforts to meet the increasing interest in taking part in and having access to the clearing­house mechanism, including in regional networking, and to report to the Conference of the Parties prior to the next meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice;

6. Continue to provide financial assistance for the preparation of national reports, having regard to the constraints and needs identified by Parties in their first national reports, in accordance with decision IV/14;

7. Provide adequate and timely support for the design and approaches relevant to the implementation of incentive measures, including, where necessary, assessment of biological diversity of the relevant ecosystems, capacity­building necessary for the design and implementation of incentive measures and the development of appropriate legal and policy frameworks, and projects with components that provide for these incentives, in accordance with decision IV/10;

8. In accordance with decision IV/8, provide support for:

(a) Stock­taking activities, such as, for example, assessments of current legislative, administrative and policy measures on access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing, evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of a country's institutional and human capacity, and promotion of consensus­building among its different stakeholders;

(b) Formulation of access and benefit-sharing mechanisms at the national, subregional and regional levels, including monitoring, assessment, and incentive measures;

(c) Capacity-building on measures on access to genetic resources and sharing of benefits, including capacity-building on economic valuation of genetic resources;

(d) Within biodiversity projects, other specific benefit­sharing initiatives such as support for entrepreneurial developments by local and indigenous communities, facilitation of financial sustainability of projects promoting the sustainable use of genetic resources, and appropriate targeted research components.