The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) held a Regional Workshop on Biodiversity and Finance in Support of the Nagoya Outcomes for Central America in Panama City, Panama on Wednesday, 4 May. Organized by the Global Environment Facility’s (GEF) Country Support Programme in collaboration with the CBD Secretariat, it is part of a series of regional workshops on biodiversity and finance convened as follow-up to the Tenth Session of the CBD’s governing body, the Conference of Parties (COP), held October 2010 in Nagoya, Japan.

The Central American workshop included 18 participants from Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Venezuela and Panama representing governments, NGOs, and indigenous peoples. In the morning participants addressed the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization, the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020, and national biodiversity strategies and action plans (NBSAPs), including their financial implications. In the afternoon the workshop discussed the implementation of the Convention’s Strategy for Resource Mobilization, including funding needs, gaps, priorities, planning and innovative financing. More information...

Hesiquio Benítez, Mexico, facilitator, invited participants to exchange views and national experiences.

An indigenous peoples NGO representative suggested that indigenous peoples should be involved in the national implementation of the Strategic Plan 2011-2020.