The validation workshop of the observatory for biodiversity and protected areas in West Africa has been held in Dakar on 14-17 March. The event was a fundamental step for the official recognition of the West Africa regional observatory.
The West Africa Economic and Monetary Union (Waemu) convened representatives of the 16 countries of the region to discuss about the results of the first 2 years of implementation of the West Africa Observatory for Protected Areas and biodiversity (OBAPAO) and the way forward.
Biodiversity and protected areas experts of west African countries beneficiary of the BIOPAMA, PAPBIO and PAPFOR programs, Technical Director and the Experts of the CSE, Regional Director and IUCN BIOPAMA expert, Representative of the Delegation of the European Union to Senegal, Experts from the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Expert from the VITO Design Office, ECOWAS Expert, Regional Coordinators of the PAPBIO and PAPFOR programs and Representative and experts from the UEMOA Commission met in presence for a review and validation workshop for progress carried out as part of the establishment and operationalization of the Observatory
The OBAPAO observatory encourages the dissemination of relevant scientific data and knowledge on biodiversity to support decision-making and enhances the capacity of key stakeholders in data collection and sharing, and builds capacities to assess PAs management effectiveness.
The Regional Reference Information System (RRIS) is one of the main pillars of the observatory work, enhancing the availability and accessibility of data and knowledge on the state of biodiversity and to promote regional and national engagement to make policy-related data available. The RRIS is an online information system composed of a suite of map-centric tools aimed at gathering all the best available scientific data on biodiversity conservation and management and at increasing the impact of biodiversity data in decision-making processes.
Please check OBAPAO RRIS, you can find maps, reports, data and other relevant information on the status of biodiversity and protected areas that you can download and use as needed: www.obapao.org
