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Decision COP XIII/8
CBD/COP/DEC/XIII/8

Sustainable use of biodiversity: bushmeat and sustainable wildlife management

The Conference of the Parties,
Concerned with the continued decline of certain wildlife species due to extensive destruction and degradation of natural habitats, fragmentation and the loss of landscape connectivity, as well as other threats, including illegal exploitation and illegal wildlife trade, unsustainable use of wildlife products and resources, climate change, (illegal) land conversion, pollution, and invasive alien species, that impact negatively on the survival and regeneration of wild species, as well as on sustainable development and human well-being,
Mindful that wildlife loss has consequences for vital ecological processes that support biodiversity, and serious socioeconomic, food security, nutrition and health related impacts, affecting customary sustainable use and the culture, spirituality and identity of indigenous peoples and local communities,
Noting the need for sound wildlife management programmes that build upon an understanding of biological and ecological factors, and effective and equitable programmes, recognizing the importance of the human dimension, not only in terms of human needs and benefit-sharing, including custodianship and the historical rights of indigenous peoples and local communities to access wildlife, in accordance with national legislation, but also with respect to generating and sharing incentives for wildlife conservation and sustainable use,
Also noting the potential for enhanced policy harmonization on wildlife conservation, sustainable use and trade contributing to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,  in particular on Targets 15.7 and 15.c under Goal 15, United Nations General Assembly resolution 69/314, and the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020,
Recognizing that considerable work has been done under the Convention on ways to improve the sustainability of wildlife management, including the harvesting of bushmeat, notes that the issue of sustainable use of wildlife intersects with other sectors, and that a strategic and broad approach is needed to address these issues,
Reaffirming the role of the Collaborative Partnership on Sustainable Wildlife Management in facilitating coordinated work on the sustainable use of biodiversity and enhancing synergies among its members,
Operational Active Parties Other Government(s) Relevant organizations
1. Encourages Parties and other Governments, as well as relevant organizations, to consider and implement, as appropriate, the road map  for better governance towards a more sustainable bushmeat sector, presented to the XIV World Forestry Congress in Durban, South Africa, in September 2015, and invites Parties to make use of the road map when developing and implementing their national biodiversity strategies and action plans;
Operational Active Parties Other Government(s)

2. Encourages Parties and other Governments to integrate existing guidance and recommendations of the Convention related to the sustainable use of wildlife, into plans and strategies for development cooperation agencies, to enhance the mainstreaming of the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in relevant sectors;

Operational Active Parties

3. Invites Parties to include in their sixth national reports to the Convention on Biological Diversity information on the use of rights-based management systems and the transfer of these rights and associated management to indigenous peoples and local communities with regard to sustainable wildlife management;

Operational Active Parties

4. Also invites Parties to work with indigenous peoples and local communities to provide training and capacity building in sustainable wildlife management, including exchanging information and skills at various levels;

Operational Active Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

5. Requests the Executive Secretary, in collaboration with other members of the Collaborative Partnership on Sustainable Wildlife Management, subject to the availability of resources:

Operational Implemented Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(a) To further elaborate technical guidance for better governance towards a more sustainable bushmeat sector, with a view to supporting Parties’ implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020, building on the road map2 on the role of bushmeat in food security and nutrition and the results of the Symposium on “Beyond enforcement: Communities, governance, incentives, and sustainable use in combating illegal wildlife trade”, held in South Africa in February 2015, as well as the workshop on “Sustainable use and bushmeat trade in Colombia: operationalizing the legal framework in Colombia”, held in Leticia, Colombia, in October 2015, taking into account the perspective and knowledge of indigenous peoples and local communities in customary sustainable use of biodiversity;

Operational Implemented Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(b) To jointly scope and organize a Wildlife Forum event, facilitating the involvement of Parties, other Governments and relevant stakeholders, including indigenous peoples and local communities, to consider and define the priorities for work with respect to sustainable wildlife use and management,  taking into account previous work on this matter, including the Addis Ababa Principles and Guidelines for the Sustainable Use of Biodiversity;

Operational Implemented Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(c) To enhance synergies with the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services with regard to the re-scoping of the assessment on sustainable use of biodiversity;

Operational Active Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(d) To continue to support efforts by Parties to combat illicit trafficking in wildlife, in line with United Nations General Assembly resolution 69/314, adopted in July 2015, and to enhance institutional capacities on wildlife conservation and law enforcement, with relevant law enforcement bodies such as the members of the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime;

Operational Implemented Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

(e) To report on progress to the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice and the Working Group on Article 8(j) and related provisions at a meeting held prior to the fourteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties.

Body
Conference of the Parties (COP)

Meeting
COP-13
Thirteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity
4 - 17 December, 2016
Cancun, Mexico

Related documents
CBD/COP/14/INF/11
Collaborative Partnership on Sustainable Wildlife Management: progress report 2017-2018
CBD/COP/14/INF/51
Report on the Wildlife Forum
CBD/COP/14/INF/7
Towards a sustainable, participatory and inclusive wild meat sector
CBD/SBSTTA/21/INF/6
Towards a sustainable, participatory and inclusive wild meat sector
CBD/SBSTTA/21/INF/7
Wild life, wild livelihoods: involving communities in sustainable wildlife management and combating illegal wildlife trade
CBD/SBSTTA/21/INF/8
Wildlife trade in Amazon countries: an analysis of trade in CITES-listed species
http://foris.fao.org/wfc2015/api/file/55560e24f842363144d618c6/contents/c3d97795-0298-4e6e-8e0f-a3ab183be83b.pdf
https://ipbes.net/sites/default/files/ipbes-6-inf-8_en_0.pdf
https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N15/238/62/PDF/N1523862.pdf?OpenElement
Related decisions / recommendations
SBSTTA-XX/11
Sustainable use of biodiversity: bushmeat and sustainable wildlife management: information in response to decision XII/18, paragraph 13