REQUEST FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDING ON
BIODIVERSITY ENABLING ACTIVITY
Submitted by UNDP on behalf of the
Government of Sudan
Country Name:
The Republic of the Sudan
Project Title:
Country Eligibility:
Assessment of capacity building needs and country specific
priorities in biodiversity management and conservation in Sudan
Sudan ratified the CBD in October 1995
GEF Financing:
US$ 102,000
Government Contribution:
US$ 10,000
Estimated total Budget:
US$ 112,000
GEF Implementing Agency:
UNDP
National Executing Agency:
Higher Council for Environment and Natural Resources
CBD Operational Focal Point:
Higher Council for Environment and Natural Resources
CHM Focal Point:
Higher Council for Environment and Natural Resources
Estimated Starting Date:
February 2000
Duration:
10 Months
Project Summary
The proposed add-on project aims to assist the Government of the Sudan and its appropriate institutions in the
assessment of national capacity building needs and country specific priorities in biodiversity management and
conservation, especially assessing needs for implementing the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan.
Having finalized the NBSAP, The Government of the Sudan is committed to its implementation. This add on
will assess strengths of national and local levels institutional structures, identify weaknesses, gaps, and capacity
building needs, and develop plans for capacity building to meet biodiversity management and conservation
objectives both in the short and long terms. It will build on the information, achievements and recommendations
of the just completed NBSAP process.
The main elements of the project will include establishment of informal collaborative working groups to
undertake detailed assessment of capacity building needs in priority areas in biodiversity selected through a
participatory process and approved at the final national workshop of the NBSAP.
The project will follow an NGO execution arrangement whereby IUCN on behalf of the Higher Council for
Environment and Natural Resources (HCENR) will be entrusted coordination of project activity
implementation.
Both the Government of Sudan and the GEF implementing agency are in agreement that this project conforms
with the GEF Operational Criteria for additional funding of biodiversity enabling activities.
1
I. Status of the Biodiversity Enabling Activity in the Sudan
Following the ratification of the Convention on Biological Diversity in October 1995, the Government of the
Sudan received GEF support for the development of National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan as an
enabling activity to meet government’s obligation under the CBD. The NBSAP development was carried out
through an interactive participatory approach involving the Higher Council for Environment and Natural
resources (HCENR) as the national implementing agency, agriculture, tourism, environment, trade, education,
NGO community and national universities in the Sudan. IUCN East Africa Regional Office provided technical
backstopping to the project on behalf of UNDP.
The biodiversity enabling project, which is now in its final stage, has culminated the following outputs:
a) Establishment of a functional Biodiversity Project Unit
A project unit with necessary staff, equipment and transport has been established within the HCENR.
The unit will soon be transformed into a permanent biodiversity coordination unit as part of the
permanent structure of the Council.
b) Establishment of the project steering committee
This was formed from members drawn from different sectors representing the Government
environment related sectors, the NGO community, and national universities to oversee project
implementation. Following the completion of the project, the committee will be restructured to a
permanent National Biodiversity Committee to provide policy guidance and advice to the Government
of Sudan on biodiversity management and conservation issues including implementation of the
NBSAP, the CBD and related conventions.
c)
Capacity building and awareness raising:
Special program as part of the BSAP was initiated and implemented by the local Sudan Environment
Conservation Society that aimed at raising awareness on biodiversity issues at different levels of
stakeholders. The project also supported awareness on biodiversity management by providing relevant
literature, organizing special national and state workshops on CBD and its mechanisms such as COP
and SBSTTA processes and capacity building in biodiversity planning, participatory processes,
biodiversity assessment, biodiversity economics, regional biodiversity issues and international
biodiversity negotiations and participation.
d) Undertake biodiversity assessment and preparation of the Biodiversity Country Study:
This has been one of the main activities of the project undertaken through a participatory process.
Measures were put in place to ensure active participation of national experts, sharing of regional and
international experience as well balance of gender.
e)
Preparation of the report to Conference of the Parties (COP)
Draft report has been finalized and submitted to government for review, approval and submission to
CBD Secretariat. The HCENR will be utilizing the experience gained so far, especially on consultation,
for preparation of the second national report to COP and other environment related national reports.
f)
Development of NBSAP
The NBSAP development has been one of the major outputs of the enabling project involving as much
as possible consultation with and participation of stakeholders at both Federal and State levels
including representatives of the civil society. The final draft has been finalized and translated into
Arabic, the national language for a much wider circulation. The final draft has been submitted to the
HCENR for organizing the final Government review and approval.
In further supporting Sudan in CBD implementation, GEF had also approved in 1998 a request of the
Government of the Sudan on Clearing-House Mechanism (CHM). The establishment of the CHM has so far
involved purchase and installation of the necessary equipment, and the establishment of the project web site.
2
II. Priorities for Capacity Building Needs
The national biodiversity strategy and action plan identifies strengthening of organizational set up and capacity
for conservation and management of biodiversity as an important activity that needs immediate attention to
enhance implementation of the strategy. This is in response to the findings of the biodiversity assessment
undertaken during NBSAP development. The assessment identified lack of appropriate and adequate skills,
inappropriate infrastructure, and inadequate institutional and legal framework for biodiversity conservation as
major capacity building challenges in biodiversity management in the Sudan.
The Final National Biodiversity Workshop that took place in April 2000 provided a participatory and useful
forum in confirming the findings of the biodiversity assessment reports and in identifying priority areas for
actions including scientific and management capacity building. The workshop identified the following priority
areas for further capacity needs assessment and development of plans for capacity enhancement to support
implementation of NBSAP. The selected priorities were also confirmed and approved during the Tripartite
Review Meeting held jointly between project partners on the 7 th of June 2000.
1. Assessment of national capacities in implementation of general measures for in-situ and ex-situ
conservation and sustainable use, including national plans, strategies and legislation
Despite a renowned wealth of important biodiversity at the species and ecosystem levels in Sudan,
organizational coordinating structures and legal frameworks regulating the use and conservation of
biodiversity are ad hoc and in-effective. The NBSAP through the various consultative and regional
meetings concluded that current status and expected trends in biodiversity degradation is alarming, and the
Government of Sudan has a limited capacity to address biodiversity management issues at all levels.
According to the NBSAP, the institutional and legal frameworks should be evaluated and the national
stakeholders’ capacity to enforce regulatory measures should be strengthened.
The current add-on will complement the NBSAP recommendation by providing an opportunity for a
working group of national and international experts to undertake participatory and consultative evaluation
of national capacities related to institutional set up and legal framework measures necessary for in situ and
ex situ conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. Roles of stakeholder agencies in the Sudan will be
determined, the organisational structure of biodiversity units within HCENR and relevant agencies will be
clarified, and the overall professional capacity of individuals will be assessed.
The Working Group will depend on the results of NBSAP assessment reports, which identified
inappropriate infrastructure, and inadequate institutional and legal framework for biodiversity conservation
as a major capacity building challenge in biodiversity management. As part of the institutional analysis,
critical capacity constraints will be identified and the kinds of capacity development and co-ordinating
structures, opportunities, human resources and training needed for implementation of recommended
conservation measures will be suggested. A proposed capacity building plan will be developed in coordination with the NBSAP and other relevant national and local capacity building initiatives.
2.
Assessment of national capacity building in biodiversity monitoring including taxonomy
As per the recommendation of the biodiversity stocktaking reports that were developed as part of the
NBSAP, national professional expertise in the Sudan in plant and animal biosystematics is very limited.
The national and federal stakeholder agencies working on biodiversity monitoring and management
including universities are faced with certain constraints in terms of numbers and qualifications of expertise
in respect to fields of taxonomic knowledge and biodiversity valuable areas in Sudan requesting taxonomic
investigations.
The add on proposal, building on available literature and in consultation with the national and federal
related agencies and institutions and the NBSAP steering committee, will undertake a detailed inventory
and an assessment of capacity building needs and gaps in expertise related to plants and animal taxonomy.
The teamwork will entail the preparation of an assessment report demonstrating capacity building
recommendations that will be incorporated into the overall capacity building plan.
3
3. Assessment of national capacity building needs related to managing access to genetic resources
and benefit sharing
In the Sudan and as per the recommendations of the NBSAP, it is noted that there is a lack of capacity in
backstopping and regulating policy measures related to collection of bio-resources, biodiversity
prospecting, scientific research on plant and animal resources, intellectual and community based property
rights. The institutional and human resource development base in this strategic area of support is ad hoc.
The current add on proposal will build on the NBSAP recommendations, the CBD objectives and the CoP
guidelines, to undertake informal collaborative and consultative assessment of national capacity building
needs and country priority actions related to
1) access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing,
2) formulation of access and benefit-sharing mechanisms, and
3) developing measures for access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing.
The assessment will involve government departments involved in natural-biological resource management,
universities, agriculture, trade, state governments, civil traditional society and NGOs. The main output of
this activity will be a synthesised assessment report demonstrating current situation in managing access to
genetic resources and benefit sharing, highlighting gaps and priorities related to IPR/CPR, and elaborating
mechanisms needed to ensure fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from access to genetic resources.
The output of this activity will be incorporated into the overall capacity building plan.
The table in Annex 1. describes the intended work and expected products in pursuing capacity assessment needs
in the identified priority areas.
4.
Preparation of Sudan’s Second National Report to the CBD.
Sudan’s second national report to the CBD will be prepared by the project coordinator based on the results of
the BSAP development process. The second national report will be endorsed by the HCENR and the project
steering committee prior to formal submission.
III. Project Implementation and Institutional Framework
The add-on request will follow national coordination arrangements led by HCENR. The Project also will be
overseen by the national steering committee that was established during phase I of the biodiversity-enabling
project. The UNDP will call upon IUCN to execute and to provide UNDP with substantive technical
backstopping to the project.
The PIU, which is still operational within HCENR, will continue to serve project implementation and daily
operations. UNDP will provide overall technical backstopping, and will monitor project implementation as per
UNDP rules and procedures including convening a tripartite co-ordination meeting.
The Project Co-ordinator and the working groups under the supervision of the Steering Committee, and in coordination with HCENR and UNDP will be responsible for the organisation of project informal meetings and
national workshops including the final national workshop aiming to review/endorse working groups final
reports. The Project Co-ordinator also will be responsible for the formulation of an overview report summarising
capacity building needs and priorities in biodiversity and will ensure submission of report (and other reports,
documents and capacity building plans) to the Government for endorsement. Finally, the project Co-ordinator will
ensure incorporation of add-on results/outcomes into Sudan national report on biodiversity and submission of
report through the government to the CoP/CBD.
UNDP and the GEF Focal Point of the Sudan have satisfied themselves that the proposal for additional funding
complies with the operational criteria for the expedited financing of biodiversity enabling activities
4
IV
Table 1.
Timetable of activity sequencing per month
Activity/Month
Contract National Project Coordinator
Finalization of TORs for Consultants
Finalize add-on working plan and convene meeting
of national steering committee
Establish working groups and contracts for
national and international consultants
Formulate the 2nd Country Report on Biodiversity
and submission of report to CoP/CBD before May
2001
Informal consultations of working groups with
national and local stakeholders
National Consultation Workshops on
- Assessment of capacity for implementation of
measures for in-situ and ex-situ conservation
and sustainable use
- Assessment of capacity in biodiversity
monitoring programs including taxonomy
- Assessment of capacity building needs related
to managing access to genetic resources and
benefit sharing
Working groups prepare and finalise assessment
reports on capacity building plans/needs
A national workshop to review/endorse
recommendation reports
An overview report summarising capacity building
needs/priorities in biodiversity in Sudan
Submission of report and group reports and
products to national implementing agency and
other ministries for action
Incorporation of capacity building needs into
Country’s report to the CoP/CBD
5
1



2
3
4










5
6
7
8
9
10





















3. INPUTS
Government Input:
This will be approximately US$ 10,000 made available in kind and through provision of office space and some
infrastructure, management support, facilitate participation of national partners and solicit political support.
GEF/UNDP input:
A total of US$102,000 as outlined in the table below:
Table 2.
Cost estimates for additional enabling activities (US$)
ACTIVITY
APPROVED EARLIER
 Original EA, less costs of CHM activities
 CHM support (provided through add-on module or project
itself)
Total Approved Support
ADDITIONAL REQUEST
Assessment of Capacity-building needs for:
PRODUCT
(no
entry
PROCESS
required)
TOTAL
334,000
14,000
348,000 2

Implementation of general measures for in-situ and ex-situ
conservation and sustainable use
10,000
30,000
40,000

Initial assessment and monitoring programs, including
taxonomy
10,000
30,000
40,000

Access to genetic resources, benefit-sharing
formulation of mechanisms for these purposes
and
6,000
14,000
20,000
Formulation/submission of Sudan 2nd Country Report on
Biodiversity to the CoP/CBD
Total new request
GRAND TOTAL (2+3)
2,000
-

6
28,000
74,000
2,000
102,000 3
450,000
Table 3 .
Priority
Priorities for capacity building needs
Reasons for Priority
Work to be done
Selection
1. Detailed assessment of
Assessment
of Current status and
the available
national capacity expected trends in
institutional/legal
in implementation biodiversity
frameworks, coof measures for in- degradation needs
ordination structures,
situ and ex-situ immediate attention
capacity, and gaps,
conservation and
including available
sustainable
use, Initial and preliminary
capacity building
including national assessment under
opportunities for
plans,
strategies BSAP indicates that
Sudan has limited
implementation of
and legislation
capacity to address
recommended measures
current and future
for in-situ and ex situ
biodiversity
conservation
management issues at
2. Propose a capacity
all levels
building plan
Lack of national
1. Detailed assessment of
Assessment of
expertise in taxonomy
the available capacity and
national capacity
gaps in taxonomy
building in
Need for taxonomic
2. Propose capacity building
biodiversity
assessment to urgently
in taxonomy
monitoring
support monitoring and 3. Collection of taxonomic
programs
biodiversity
literature to be stored in a
including
information
central data base
taxonomy
Assessment
of
capacity building
needs related to
managing access
to
genetic
resources
and
benefit sharing
Lack of capacity related
to access to genetic
resources and benefit
sharing
1.
Review mechanisms,
capacity and gaps relevant
to collection of bio
resources, bioprospecting,
and access to gentetic
resources
2.
Plan for capacity
development
will be formulated
7
Partners to be
involved
Government
department in Natural
resources management,
state governments,
NGOs, universities,
development partners,
civil societies
Products expected
Notes
- Assessment report
Adequate
consultation at
both State and
Federal levels will
be necessary
Government
department in Natural
resources management,
state governments,
universities
development partners,
civil societies,
international
organizations such as
Bio-Net, IUCN
commissions.
Government
department involved in
Natural resources
management, state
governments,
development partners,
civil societies
- Assessment report on
capacity on taxonomy
- Capacity building plan
for conservation and
sustainable use
- Capacity building plan
- Taxonomic Literature
stored at central level
data base
- Assessment report
highlighting the
capacity building
needs and mechanism,
including an outline of
a legal framework
necessary to have fair
access to genetic
resources. The
assessment report will
be incorporated into
the overall capacity
building plan.
8