National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan.

Within the framework of national development agenda, Sustainable Development Goals, National Climate Change Action Plan, Forestry Development Master Plan and the international conventions that Ghana has signed, the national biodiversity conservation vision is that: By 2030, effective systems would be in place to ensure that biodiversity in Ghana is conserved, restored and wisely used to maintain ecosystem services, and sustain life support services for a healthy planet whiles ensuring continuous and equitable sharing of the costs and benefits arising therefrom, to the well-being, prosperity and security of all. Following from this vision the mission is To take effective and urgent actions to minimise the loss of biodiversity in order to ensure that by 2030 ecosystems in Ghana are resilient and continue to provide essential services, thereby securing the country’s variety of life, and contribute to human well-being, and poverty eradication. As a signatory to the international convention on biodiversity the goal of the NBSAP is To pursue effective policies, regulations, and programmes that would ensure that biodiversity is valued, conserved, restored and wisely used to maintain ecosystem services, sustain life support services and promote continuous and equitable flow of benefits to all.
The effective management of biodiversity to meet the national development objectives on biodiversity is guided by the four strategic objectives: to address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by mainstreaming biodiversity into all sectors of government and society programmes; to improve the status of biodiversity by safeguarding ecosystems, species and genetic diversity; to enhance the benefits of biodiversity to all sectors of the economy; to enhance implementation of national biodiversity action plan through participatory planning, knowledge management and capacity building. 5.6.1 Promoting Social Inclusion: Recognising gender equality as an important goal and priority for the country, the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology & Innovation will monitor the mainstreaming of gender issues in all biodiversity projects to advance the global environmental benefits as well as contributing to the national goal of gender equality and equity, and social inclusion. Special attention would be given to projects that will a) empower vulnerable groups through gender sensitive livelihood that strengthen the adaptive capacities of women to climate change; b) create awareness and build capacities for mainstreaming gender and develop strategies and mechanisms for mainstreaming gender including financial, economic and policy aspects, c) promote gender responsiveness in the management of natural resources under changing climatic conditions; d) enhance the economic empowerment of women.
The strategic objectives are to be achieved over 25 years within a three phase programme - a short term of 5 year (2016-2020); 10-year medium term (2021-2030) and a 10-year long term programme (20301-2040). In keeping with Ghana’s commitment under the Convention, the strategic objectives have been formulated into a short term programme and actions plans to be implemented between now and 2020 by various sector ministries. The activities identified fit into the on-going national development agenda with funding from national annual budget and development partners. Guided by the Aichi objectives, the implementation of the each target has been summarised into action plans to indicate the main planned activities, target and indicators that will provide the enabling conditions and incentives necessary to achieve the goals or priority areas and targets of the NBSAP. The action plan determines what is to be done, who does what, where, when, and how. For easy monitoring each plan has been presented in tabular form.
The NBSAP is divided into four components and 20 action plans as follows: Component 1: Address the Underlying Causes of Biodiversity Loss by Mainstreaming Biodiversity across Government and Society; Component 2: Improve the Status of Biodiversity by Safeguarding Ecosystems, Species and Genetic Diversity; Component 3: Enhance the Benefits to All from Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services; Component 4: Enhance Strategy Implementation through Participatory Planning, Knowledge Management and Capacity Building.
Action Plan 1: Create public awareness of biodiversity to promote conservation, restoration and sustainability; A.P.2: Integrate and mainstream biodiversity into national development and poverty reduction strategies; A.P.3: Incentives harmful to biodiversity are eliminated; A.P.4: Develop plans for sustainable production and consumption and keep the impacts on resource use within safe ecological limits; A.P.5: Reducing the rate of loss of all natural resources (forests); A.P.6: Overfishing is avoided; A.P.7: Agriculture, aquaculture and forestry managed sustainably, to ensure conservation of biodiversity; A.P.8: Minimizing pollution; A.P.9: Ensuring that invasive alien species are identified and priority species are controlled or eradicated, and measures are in place to manage pathways to prevent them; A.P.10: Minimizing the anthropogenic pressures on coral reefs, and other vulnerable ecosystems impacted by climate change or ocean acidification; A.P.11: Ensuring that terrestrial and inland water, and coastal and marine areas are conserved through systems of Protected Areas; A.P.12: Preventing the extinction of threatened species; A.P.13: Maintaining the genetic diversity of domestic and wild plants and animals; A.P.14: Restoring and safeguarding ecosystems; A.P.15: Enhancing ecosystem resilience and restoration to promote biodiversity conservation to carbon stocks; A.P.16: Implementing the Nagoya Protocol; A.P.17: Implementing an effective, participatory and updated NBSAP; A.P.18: Ensuring that the traditional knowledge of indigenous communities use, are respected; A.P.19: Knowledge, on the science base and technologies relating to biodiversity and the consequences of its loss, are improved; A.P.20: Mobilizing increased financial resources for effectively implementing the strategic plan for biodiversity 2016- 2020.