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On Sunday 8 April 2012, the Government of Mauritania officially launched the Medium-Sized Project "Partnership to Mainstream Marine and Coastal Biodiversity into Oil and Gas Sector Development in Mauritania" (GEF US$ 1 million; co-financing US$ 4.5 million) in the country's capital, Nouakchott.
This project is one of several under the GEF Strategic Program on West Africa (SPWA-BD: GEF Program in West Africa: Sub-component on Biodiversity), which aims to scale up biodiversity conservation in the region while capitalizing on socio-economic benefits from sustainable activities supporting poverty alleviation and growth. The Strategic Program on West Africa is built on three main priority areas: poverty reduction among communities residing in an around protected areas, mainstreaming biodiversity in production landscapes and sectors, and consolidation of protected area networks.
The Mauritania Biodiversity, Oil & Gas Project is one of the challenging "mainstreaming" projects in the region – all of which broadly work to integrate biodiversity considerations into production land/seascapes and sectors. Developed through a collaboration among the Government of Mauritania, GEF, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), IUCN and WWF, the project will engage a broad range of other partners and stakeholders, including the oil and gas industry, and local and international NGOs.
The project aims to guide the policies and practices of the nascent offshore oil and gas industry in Mauritania in such a way that the country's uniquely rich marine and coastal ecosystems and resources are not degraded in detriment of long-term development prospects. The project will strengthen the policy, legislative and financial instruments as well as the capacity of national stakeholders, and support the capitalization of national biodiversity finance mechanisms through private sector contributions.
The launch of the project took place in the presence of the Minister for Environment and Sustainable Development, the Minister for Petrol, Energy and Mines, and the Minister for Fisheries and Maritime Economy, who all confirmed their commitment to the project. The day's presentations and discussions focused on the status and outlook of the oil and gas industry, the critical role of biodiversity and natural resources – especially fisheries – in Mauritania's economy, and the project's expected contributions in reconciling the different development pathways on the table.
Further participants included representatives from UNDP, GIZ, IUCN, WWF, local civil society organizations, and technical and financial partners.
QUOTATION
"By its cross-sectoral and inter-disciplinary nature, this critical project creates a link between public policy and the major economic activities in the country. It illustrates the commitment of Mauritania to render development activities, including of the extractive industries, increasingly sustainable – at a moment when heads of State and Government will soon gather in Rio to discuss the greening of the global economy." Dr Coumba Mar Gadio, UNDP Resident Representative in Mauritania
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From left to right: Nabil Hajjar, Honorary Consul for Benelux in Mauritania; Klaus Mersmann, Director, Natural Resources Management Programme, GIZ Mauritania; Taleb Ould Abdi Vall, Minister for Petrol, Energy and Mines; Amedi Camara, Minister for Environment and Sustainable Development; Ghdafna Ould Eyih, Minister for Fisheries and Maritime Economy; Coumba Mar Gadio, Resident Representative, UNDP Mauritania.