STRATEGY AND ACTION PLAN FOR PROTECTION OF BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA (2015-2020) 1. INTRODUCTION The Convention on Biological Diversity – CBD came into force on December 29, 1993, 90 days after its 3oth ratification. Today, the CBD is a globally accepted document establishing preservation of biological diversity as a fundamental nature protection principle, and is considered a joint concern and obligation for the society. BiH ratified the CBD on October 4, 2002, in the Decision on Ratification of the CBD (Article V.3.d, of the Constitution of BiH, the 152nd session) passed by the Presidency of BiH. The text of the CBD was published in the Official Gazette of BiH No. 13/02. The basic goals of the CBD are as follows: ■ Protection of biological and landscape diversity; ■ Sustainable use of biological diversity components; ■ Just distribution of the benefits arising from the use of genetic sources. The obligations of each Party to the Convention are contained in the text of CBD. According to Article 6 of the CBD, the Parties to the Convention are required to develop and adopt national strategies, plans or programs for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and to integrate, as far as possible and as appropriate, the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity into relevant sectoral and cross-sectoral plans, programs and policies. This means that drafting and adoption of the Strategy and Action Plan for Protection of Biological Diversity (National Biodiversity Action Plan – NBSAP) in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is an activity that is related to the actual implementation of CBD by BiH and includes objectives and measures for biodiversity conservation for the period specified in NBSAP. BiH has drafted its first NBSAP BiH (2008-2015) so far, which was adopted in mid-2011 by the Council of Ministers of BiH. For the first time, the NBSAP BiH (2008-2015) encompassed the status of biological diversity and planned activities in the domain of nature protection. Decision No. X/2, on October 18, and 19 October in Nagoya, Japan, at the 10th CBD Conference of Parties – COP, adopted a revised, ten- year Strategic Plan for Biological Diversity 2011-2020 (hereinafter referred to as: Strategic Plan for 2011-2020), representing a fundamental document aimed to direct international and national activities with the goal of preservation of biological diversity and of accomplishing the three CBD goals. The Strategic Plan for 2011-2020 identifies five global strategic directions (A, B, C, D, and E) (Table 1), each of which strategic direction covers a specific number of Aichi Targets. According to the Strategic Plan 2011-2020, each CBD signatory country should: • Review the NBSAP and develop the state national targets by 2020 that are in compliance with Aichi Targets; • Propose and establish indicators for systemic monitoring of the status (monitoring) of biological diversity and national targets of the state by 2020; • Prepare the Fifth National Report to the CBD in which the state will report on progress achieved in the field of biological diversity, prior to the COP 12 session (6-17 October 2014, in the Republic of Korea). REVIEW THE NBSAP The revision of the existing NBSAP BiH (2008-2015) and the development of Fifth National Report according to CBD are done through the implementation of the project titled „Support to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) for Revision of the Strategy and Action Plan for Protection of Biological Diversity (National Biodiversity Action Plan – NBSAP) and the completion of the Fifth National Report According to the Convention on Biological Diversity – CBD“, during the period of two years ( January, 2013 – December, 2014). The Project was financed by the Global Environmental Facility – GEF), and implemented by the United Nations Environmental Programme – UNEP. The main partners in the Project were the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations (MoFTER BiH), Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction and Ecology of the Republika Srpska (MSPCE RS), and Federal Ministry of Environment and Tourism (FMET). A joint coordination body - Center for Energy, Environment and Resources (CENER 21) and an expert team have been in charge of implementation of the Project activities. For the needs of the NBSAP revision, the CBD Secretariat has developed a methodology1through the package of modules containing guidelines and instructions for coordinators, experts, decision makers and other relevant participants in the NBSAP planning and implementation. This methodology has also been used for the development of the revised NBSAP BiH (2015-2020) under the Project implemented by UNEP. The main participants of the Project are: 1. Steering Board (UNEP in BiH, MoFTER BiH, FMET and MSPCE RS); 2. The expert team consisting of experts in the domain of biological diversity, appointed by FMET and MSPCE RS; 3. CENER 21, as the local coordinating body. The process of revision of the NBSAP BiH (2015-2020) included five principal stages: 1. Analysis of status of biological diversity; 2. Development of national goals, principles and priorities; 3. Drafting of the Action Plan; 4. Drafting of the Development Plans; 5. Monitoring, reporting and data sharing. The NBSAP BiH (2015-2020) is the core document concerning nature conservation in BiH providing a detailed review of the status of biological diversity up to 2014, and it is the foundation for assessment of situation in the forthcoming period. The national goals concerning conservation of biological diversity in the NBSAP BiH (2015-2020) have been set based on the priorities and specific qualities of BiH, and they are for the most part coordinated with the Strategic Plan for 2011-2020, taking into account the overall economic, social and cultural development of the state. The document also contains the proposed indicators for each of the national goals, the action plan with measures that 1 The set of capacity strengthening modules for the development of the NBSAP is accessible on the official CBD website (http://www.cbd.int/nbsap/training/default.shtm) need to be implemented over the next 5 years, as well as the implementation plans serving as a tool for successful and facilitated implementation of the NBSAP BiH (2015-2020). The NBSAP BiH (2015-2020) consists of six main chapters: • Chapter 1 is an introductory part with information on biological diversity and the CBD, and on the development process of NBSAP BiH (2015-2020). • Chapter 2 is a sectional view of the current biological diversity status in BiH in accordance with the 20 thematic Aichi Targets (Annex 1) that are grouped into five global strategic goals. • Chapter 3 covers the national targets and proposed indicators to monitor the progress of a given goal for reporting purposes. • Chapter 4 includes an Action Plan detailing the measures/activities which will provide the conditions and incentives necessary to achieve the national targets. • Chapter 5 contains four plans that serve as tools for successful implementation of the NBSAP BiH (2015- 2020). • Chapter 6 pertains to the conclusions of the previously explored and defined chapters, as well as to future needs and steps for improving the biological diversity status. In the period of 2005-2010, BiH completed the First, Second, Third and Fourth National CBD Reports. The Fifth National Report was submitted to the CBD Secretariat in April 2014, meaning that BiH has met the CBD reporting requirement level and given its contribution to global assessments and analyses related to biological diversity that served for the preparation of GBO4. STATUS OF BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY IN BIH Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is a state in the Southeast part of Europe bordering with the Republic of Croatia (931 km) in the north, northwest and south, and with the Republic of Serbia (375 km) and the Republic of Montenegro (249 km) in the east. The area size of BiH is 51,209.2 km2, and of this figure 51,197 km2 is covered by land, and 12.2 km2 by sea. Sarajevo is the capital of BiH. According to the preliminary results of the 2013 Census of Population, Households and Apartments conducted by the Statistics Agency of BiH, the number of population in BiH is 3.791,662. BiH consists of three administrative units: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), Republika Srpska (RS), and Brčko District (BD). FBiH is comprised of 10 cantons, divided into municipalities. There are a total of 79 municipalities in the FBiH, whereas there are 62 municipalities in the RS. The city of Brčko is a separate administrative unit – the District. BiH is a mountainous country covered with forests. Of the total land area, 42% are mountains, 24% are hills, 29% is karst area and 5% are lowlands. The average altitude is 500m and the highest peak is Mt. Maglić (2,387 m). According to the hydrographic characteristics, BiH belongs to the Black Sea basin (75%) and the Adriatic Sea basin (25%). The longest river is Drina (346 km), while other important rivers are: Una, Vrbas, Bosna, Sava, Neretva and Trebišnjica. The largest lake is Lake Buško (55.8 km2). BiH is also abundant in river lakes (on the Pliva and Una rivers) and in mountain lakes (in the area of Dinarides), as well as in thermal and geothermal groundwater resources. Due to the topography, diverse flora and geography, BiH is dominated by three types of climate: moderately continental, mountainous continental and Mediterranean climates. In accordance with the process of making NBSAP, as recommended by the CBD Secretariat, the status of biodiversity in BiH has been analyzed and presented in 20 thematic Aichi Targets of the Strategic Plan for 2011-2020. The status of biological diversity in BiH has been analyzed on the basis of publicly available and officially obtained qualitative and quantitative data and information from relevant institutions and organizations, which cover the period from 2008, that is from the time when the NBSAP (2008-2015) was finalized, until 2014.