Dry and sub-humid lands biodiversity: matters requested by the Conference of the Parties in paragraphs 5 and 6 of its decision V/23 and decision VI/4

The Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice

1. Invites the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, as the executing agency of the Global Land Degradation Assessment of Drylands and the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment to consider integrating, in the context of their respective mandates, the needs for information on status and trends of dry and sub-humid land biodiversity, and ways to strengthen national efforts to conduct assessments, and to report on this matter to the seventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties.

2. Recommends that the Conference of the Parties:

(a) Adopts the proposed process for the periodic assessment of the status and trends of biological diversity, in dry and sub-humid lands, as described in table 1 below, taking into account national laws, policies and programmes and recognizing the urgency for action in those countries severely affected by land degradation, focusing on strengthening the capacities of developing countries and countries with economies in transition to conduct assessments at the national level and build on the knowledge and structures of ongoing global assessments, as well as national assessments;

(b) Adopts the proposal prepared by the Executive Secretary for the further refinement of the programme of work and suggesting collaborating partners as indicated in the annex to the present recommendation;

(c) Request s the Executive Secretary to ensure that the parts of the programme of work relating to other thematic programmes of work of the Convention are taken into account when developing and reviewing these programmes of work;

(d) Requests the Executive Secretary, in consultation with Parties, to develop targets for the implementation of the programme of work, taking into account especially national action programmes to combat desertification (NAPs), the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation, the Global Taxonomy Initiative, the Strategic Plan of the Convention, as well as the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, for consideration by Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice. Such a process could follow the approach taken in the development of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (decision VI/9, annex);

(e) Requests the Executive Secretary, in collaboration with the Secretariats of the other Rio Conventions and other biodiversity-related conventions, to further develop mechanisms for facilitating the synergistic implementation of these conventions, especially at the national level, as described in sections III and IV of the note by the Executive Secretary on dry and sub-humid lands prepared for the eighth meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/8/10). Such mechanisms could include:

(i) Joint work programmes,
(ii) The activities of the joint liaison group of the three Rio conventions and potential additional members, and
(iii) Joint activities with a focus on several elements:

a. Integration of activities related to national biodiversity strategies and action plans with national action programmes for the Convention to Combat Desertification, national adaptation programmes of action under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Ramsar wetland policies and other relevant programmes, including national strategies for sustainable development and poverty reduction,
b. Capacity-building, information systems, institutional arrangements and joint planning activities between the coordinating bodies and focal points of the conventions,
c. Development of criteria for synergy projects and creation of "good practice" synergy projects;
d. Sound preparation, formulation of objectives, organization and follow-up of national and regional synergy workshops,
e. Training courses and awareness-raising among relevant stakeholders,
f. Consultation, decision-making and implementation processes with the full participation of relevant stakeholders, including indigenous peoples and local communities, non-governmental organizations and the private sector. .

This process should take into account existing experience, as documented by, inter alia , the Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention to Combat Desertification (CRIC), and the "Operational Guidelines for Expedited Funding of National Self Assessment of Capacity-building Needs" of the Global Environment Facility;

(f) Further requests the Executive Secretary, in collaboration with the other Rio and other biodiversity-related conventions, to facilitate the review of the national biodiversity strategies and action plans under the Convention on Biological Diversity, in order to harmonize them with the national action programmes under the Convention to Combat Desertification, with a focus on poverty alleviation and intersectoral integration;

3. Recognizes that the effective implementation of this programme of work is subject to the availability of financial, technological and human resources, and urges Parties, countries and international organizations that are in a position to do so, to provide the necessary support.

Table 1 . Proposed process for the periodic assessment of status and trends of biological diversity in dry and sub-humid lands
(Phases II-IV will depend on the recommendations made after completion of phase I).

Annex

SYNTHESIS TABLE OF EXPECTED OUTCOMES AND TIMEFRAMES, POTENTIAL ACTORS, AND INDICATORS OF PROGRESS IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAMME OF WORK

Indicative List of Potential Collaborators** and abreviations
d Nations Forum On Forests; UNITAR=UN Institute For Training And Research; WB=World Bank; WCPA=WORLD Commission On Protected Areas; WHC=World Heritage Centre (UNESCO); WIPO=World Intellectual Property Organization; WMO=World Meteorological Organization; WRI=World Resource Institute; WTO=World Trade Organization; WWF=World Wide Fund For Nature