Expression of Interest

The conservation of private lands in Honduras began in 2001 and consequently the Honduran Network of Private Nature Reserves was established as a central initiative of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor Project which was also supported by other projects and international cooperation programs, intended to bring together a significant number of landowners with interest to promote the conservation and management of natural resources in one association, with the ultimate aim of bringing these to the category of private reserves. As one of the activities under the work program of the CBD in PA, the government of the Honduran Republic promotes the strengthening of management and private conservation initiatives, considering that it can complement the conservation of fragile ecosystems underrepresented in the national system of protected areas in Honduras. Dry forest ecosystems are one of the most threatened and also a priority for private nature reserves.The remnants of dry forest are subject to constant threats from the surrounding productive landscape, due to limited capacities, knowledge and experience of local planners in land use and landscape.

(1) Encourage private forest conservation in priority representative ecological areas which serve as connecting areas and are identified in the national gap analysis, (2) Develop policies and technical criteria for private conservation management in Honduras, (3) Strengthen capacity for enhanced technical assistance, planning and management of private reserves nationwide, (4) Promote sustainable activities for economic development and environmental sustainability of private nature reserves in the country.