Eventos

Financiamiento a largo plazo para sistemas nacionales de áreas protegidas

Habana, Cuba, 5-8 de julio 2004

Surinam

Conservation of Globally Significant Forest Ecosystems in Suriname's Guayana Shield Bio-region

Capital: - Paramaribo
Population: 480.000 people according to last census 2003

GEF Project Title: Conservation of Globally Significant Forest Ecosystems in Suriname's Guayana Shield Bio-region

UNF Project Title: Conservation of Central Suriname Nature Reserve

Goal of project: To protect globally significant biodiversity in Suriname.

Brief description of project:

The project aims at protecting the rich biodiversity of Suriname's tropical forests. It will operationalize protected area management in 2 globally important and representative sites, namely the Central Suriname Nature Reserve (CSNR), the single largest tropical forest reserve in the Guayana Shield, and the Sipaliwini Nature Reserve (SNR) in south Suriname.

The project would create and capitalize the Suriname Conservation Foundation (SCF), enabling it to reach an initial endowment target of US$ 15 m. The SCF will provide funding for conservation operations in the two reserves, including for infrastructure and staffing, capacity strengthening, biological and social assessment activities, conservation awareness and education, and targeted support for the development of ecotourism as a conservation-enabling form of livelihood. At an umbrella level, the project would support management planning for the reserves, strengthen the cadre of conservation professionals by providing training, strengthen controls over the wildlife trade, and promote progressive policy development. These interventions will be spearheaded through the creation of new conservation partnerships between the government and non-government sectors and local communities.

Objectives: - Component A: One-time Project Investments
Not related to financial sustainability.
- Component B: Suriname Conservation Foundation
Output 3: The Suriname Conservation Foundation (an endowment) is established and its long-term governance capacity is developed.

Challenges and opportunities:

Challenges; Lack of capacity in general and lack of specialized capacity (lack of Trust fund expertise and experience, this includes the pro's and con's, monitoring of the asset manager and the endowment). The Full capitalization of the Trust fund, to make it cost effective.

Opportunities: Forest cover in Suriname is 90% of which approximately 80% is pristine forest. This provides the unique and very evident opportunity, to have sustainable development at an optimum moment to human kind. In other words, due to current situation, the incremental cost for sustainable development (Conservation and Development) is less than it otherwise would be with less pristine forest.