Theme
Biodiversity Stewardship and Securing Critical Biodiversity Areas
Speaker
Willeen Olivier – Department of Environmental Affairs
Abstract
The main objectives of transfrontier conservation areas (TFCAs) are to sustainably manage shared natural and cultural resources, to foster sustainable socio-economic development, and to promote regional integration, in line with the IUCN Guidelines for Transboundary Conservation Areas. The Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) TFCA Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Framework will enable roleplayers to report on the progress made in the implementation of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) TFCA Programme, in relation to its own objectives and the requirements relevant to SADC protocols and strategies. The TFCAs M&E process shall be able to reveal the value added by TFCAs in fostering the objectives of SADC and its Member States, to promote and influence the revision of relevant protocols and strategies, to plan TFCA-related activities, and to provide an efficient tool for reporting on regional progress in conservation and development with a variety of partners and stakeholders. The M&E Framework for the SADC TFCA Programme is essentially a requirement of the SADC TFCA Programme but is positioned in a stronger regional set of requirements for: the successful establishment of TFCAs, as per Target 7 of the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) for the implementation of at least 50% of regional Transboundary Natural Resource Management projects for the monitoring of progress towards regional objectives. The TFCA M&E Framework responds to the need of having an objective and standardised system that can be used to systematically collect and analyse information on the SADC TFCAs that supports management accountability, effectiveness and efficiency. This Framework is designed to facilitate, in the medium to long-term, complementarity between the two levels of monitoring. It serves the regional level objective of establishing a reporting mechanism for the SADC TFCA Programme and it does not, in any way, substitute any TFCA level system for monitoring and evaluation. It, therefore, should not replace but complement the present Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (METT) system being implemented in South Africa.