Indo-German partnerships building a shared future for all life!

22 May, 2022

International Biodiversity Day with MoEF&CC at Chennai

"Biodiversity remains the answer to several sustainable development challenges. From nature-based solutions to climate, health issues, food and water security, and sustainable livelihoods, biodiversity is the foundation upon which we can build back better."

On 22 May 2022, on the occasion of International Day for Biodiversity, a national event and exhibition was organised by the National Biodiversity Authority, Government of India which was inaugurated by the Hon’ble Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Mr Bhupender Yadav, and Hon’ble Minister of State Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Mr Ashwiny Kr. Choubey.

While delivering his speech, the Union Minister appealed to the people to take a pledge to work towards conserving biodiversity and sensitising the youth on the issues of conservation. He also spoke about the access and benefit-sharing (ABS) initiative by the National Biodiversity Authority and the Tamil Nadu Biodiversity Board (TNBB) with the Irula Snake Catchers Industrial Cooperative Society (ISCICS) to provide access to snake venom to a company namely, iSERA Biological Pvt Ltd which has signed the ABS agreement. This initiative was supported by the Indo-German ABS partnership project (2016-2020). The project was piloted in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Uttarakhand. Dr VB Mathur, Chairperson, NBA also appreciated the role of Indo-German partnerships and GIZ in strengthening the preservation and wise use of biological resources in his vote of thanks.

Together with MoEF&CC, GIZ is implementing the Indo-German Biodiversity Programme (IGBP). Commissioned in India on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV), IGBP addresses the challenges of biodiversity conservation in many states of India. Over the years many projects under this programme have supported partners across hierarchies and geographies to fine tune their biodiversity management strategies. The exhibition booth covered some of these achievements. These include commitment from seven spice companies towards biodiversity-friendly production and commercialisation and implementation of Biodiversity Action Plans by three private companies. Some of the other impacts achieved directly with the MoEF&CC include the development of the –

• National Human-Wildlife Conflict Mitigation Strategy and Action Plan to reduce human-wildlife conflict in India. It presents an opportunity and framework to mainstream HWC mitigation in policies, plans and programmes of the forest sector and other sectors and, at all levels of governance (national, state and local), to ensure harmonious co-existence and overall well-being of humans and wildlife, conservation of ecosystem services and sustainable economic development.
• ‘Wetlands of India’ portal to involve states and citizens in the conservation and management of Indian wetlands. It is a one-stop destination for all wetland related information that may be useful for wetland authorities and site managers, administrators, decision-makers, students, and citizens.
• Digital Access and Benefit-Sharing Monitoring tool for and with the National Biodiversity Authority to track the use of biological resources in India. The ABS-MS will be able to access globally available database on information related to biodiversity in India via scientific publications, patent databases, taxonomic data and information on bio-resource based commercial products. The tool will track information on the use of biological resources and associated traditional knowledge of Indian origin and convey it to the NBA.

The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity announced Biodiversity Day 2022 slogan: “Building a shared future for all life” to continue building momentum and support for the post-2020 global biodiversity framework to be adopted at the upcoming fifteenth UN Biodiversity - Conference of Parties (CBD-COP15). The exhibition provided one such valuable space to discuss steps taken by the Indo-German cooperation projects implemented in the areas of sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity towards bending the curve of biodiversity loss. Besides, dignitaries, chairpersons and member secretaries of the 28 State Biodiversity Boards and 8 Union Territory Biodiversity Councils, Biodiversity Management Committee (BMC) members and representatives from stakeholder organisations from different parts of the country also attended the event.

Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change - Mr Bhupender Yadav; Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change - Mr Ashwini Kumar Choubey and Chairperson, National Biodiversity Authority – Dr VB Mathur at the IDB exhibition in Chennai ©GIZ

Sources

• https://www.cbd.int/biodiversity-day
• https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetailm.aspx?PRID=1827436
• https://indo-germanbiodiversity.com/articles-details-43.html
• indo-germanbiodiversity.com/project-details-285.html
• https://moef.gov.in/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/National-Human-Wildlife-Conflict-Mitigation-Strategy-and-Action-Plan-of-India-2.pdf
• https://indo-germanbiodiversity.com/articles-details-46.html
• https://indo-germanbiodiversity.com/pdf/publication/publication10-12-2020-1607594667.pdf
• https://theprint.in/india/union-minister-inaugurates-exhibition-on-international-day-of-biological-diversity/966420/