PROJECT BRIEF 1. IDENTIFIERS PROJECT NUMBER 1583 PROJECT NAME Conservation of Transboundary Biodiversity in the Minkébé -Odzala-Dja Inter-zone in Gabon, Congo, and Cameroon DURATION Seven years IMPLEMENTING AGENCY UNDP - United Nations Development Program EXECUTING AGENCY UNOPS – United Nations Office for Project Services REQUESTING COUNTRY Regional (Cameroon, Congo, Gabon) ELIGIBILITY Cameroon ratified the CBD on October 19, 1994, Congo ratified the CBD on August 1, 1996, and Gabon ratified the CBD on March 14, 1997. GEF FOCAL AREA Biodiversity GEF PROGRAMMING FRAMEWORK OP-3 Forest Ecosystems GEF STRATEGIC PRIORITIES BD-1 – Sustainability of Protected Areas systems (with relevance to BD-2) 2. SUMMARY The Western Congo Basin Moist Forest Ecoregion (WCBMFE) constitutes a large part of the tropical wilderness of Central Africa, the world’s second largest expanse of rainforest. Its globally important biodiversity faces, however, increasingly severe threats from commercial logging and mining, large-scale commercial hunting for wild meat and ivory, often using logging concession access roads. The Governments of Cameroon, Gabon and Congo, through the proposed interventions of this project seek to mitigate these threats while at the same time putting in place the long-term resource management and financing systems needed to achieve conservation objectives. The project would assist the three governments in designing and implementing a coherent land-use plan that designates protected areas, permanent forest and rural development areas, building the capacity to control 01_04_04 DRAFT PROJECT BRIEF TRIDOM UNDP/GEF 1 resource use, to monitor trends in biodiversity and ecosystem functions, through an effective law enforcement system, collaborative management schemes with the private sector and communities, including, in particular, indigenous people, and implementation of a cost-effective monitoring system. The project also seek to find ways to improve benefits for local communities through revenues generated from alternative livelihoods initiative to ease pressure on natural resource, and setting up a diversified sustainable financing scheme to cover the core management costs in TRIDOM, in particular cost related to law enforcement and protected area management. The current project will demonstrate an integrated approach to land-use planning and management that will be replicable and that will enhance and secure biodiversity conservation, promoting the conservation of the tropical forest values that have global significance. It is anticipated that at project comple tion, management structures and sustainable funding mechanisms will be in place to sustain project achievements in the long term and by interventions proposed to advance conservation in this globally significant part of the Congo Basin. 3. COSTS AND FINANCING (M ILLION US$) GEF: Full Project: US$10,117,500 PDF B: US$ 345,838 Subtotal GEF: US$10,463,338 Co financing: Governments US$ 11,180,400 Multilateral & bilateral donors US$ 23,177,700 PDF-B Co financing from WWF US$ 131,000 PDF-B Co financing from European Union – ECOFAC US$ 131,000 Subtotal Co financing: US$ 34,620,100 Total Project Costs (w/o PDF B): US$ 44,475,600 Total Project Costs (with PDF B): US$ 45,083,438 4. ASSOCIATED FINANCING (M ILLION US$) : US$ 9,266,000 5. OPERATIONAL FOCAL POINT ENDORSEMENT Name: Justin NANTCHOU NGOKO Title: GEF Operational Focal Point Organization: Ministere de l'Environnement et des Date: Date of signing: February 27, 04 Forets du Cameroon Name: Joachim OKOURANGOULOU Title: GEF Operational Focal Point, Directeur General de l'Environnement, Organization: Ministere de L'Economie Forestiere, Date: Date of signing: February 27, 04. Charge de la peche et des ressources halieutiques, Republique du Congo. Name: Chris MOMBO NZATSI Title: GEF Operational focal point, Organization: Ministere de l'Economie Forestiere, des Date: Date of signing: February 26, 04 Eaux, de la Peche, Charge de l'Environnement et de la protection de la Nature du Gabon 6. IMPLEMENTING AGENCY CONTACT: 01_04_04 DRAFT PROJECT BRIEF TRIDOM UNDP/GEF 2 Abdoulaye Ndiaye UNDP/GEF Regional Coordinator Biodiversity / International Waters for West / Central Africa Tel: (221) 849 1778 - Fax: (221) 849 1794 Email: [email protected] 01_04_04 DRAFT PROJECT BRIEF TRIDOM UNDP/GEF 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ........................................................................................................................................ 5 1. COUNTRY OWNERSHIP ................................................................................................................................................... 6 2. PROGRAMME AND POLICY CONFORMITY.......................................................................................................... 6 3. ELIGIBILITY.......................................................................................................................................................................... 7 4. PROJECT CONTEXT .......................................................................................................................................................... 8 4.1 GLOBAL SIGNIFICANCE OF BIODIVERSITY..............................................................................................................................8 4.2 SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONTEXT......................................................................................................................................................9 4.3 POLICY AND LEGISLATIVE CONTEXT.....................................................................................................................................12 4.4 INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXT........................................................................................................................................................14 5. BASELINE COURSE OF ACTION................................................................................................................................18 5.1 THREATS OVERVIEW.................................................................................................................................................................18 5.2 DESCRIPTION OF THE MOST SIGNIFICANT THREATS AND THEIR UNDERLYING ROOT CAUSES........................................19 6. ALTERNATIVE COURSE OF ACTION ......................................................................................................................22 6.1 PROJECT DESIGN - STRATEGIC DECISIONS TAKEN IN DEFINING THE ALTERNATIVE SCENARIO..................................22 6.2 GOALS OF THE PROPOSED PROJECT.........................................................................................................................................24 6.3 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT OUTPUTS...................................................................................................................26 7. STAKEHOLDER PARTICIPATION.............................................................................................................................32 8. LINKAGES WITH UNDP COMMITMENTS, OTHER GEF INITIATIVES AND LESSONS LEARNED...............................................................................................................................................................................33 9. PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION....................................................................................................................................34 10. FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTS ....................................................................................................................................35 11. SUSTAINABILITY OF PROJECT RESULTS ............................................................................................................38 12. MONITORING AND EVALUATION............................................................................................................................40 ANNEX A: INCREMENTAL COST ANALYSIS....................................................................................................................42 ANNEX B: LOGICAL FRAMEWORK......................................................................................................................................61 ANNEX C: STAP ROSTER TECHNICAL REVIEW / RESPONSE TO STAP COMMENTS .................................97 ANNEX D: OFP LETTERS OF ENDORSEMENTS ............................................................................................................113 ANNEX E: MAPS ............................................................................................................................................................................114 E.1: MAPS OF PROJECT AREA........................................................................................................................................................... 114 E.2: MAP OF HUMAN DENSITY IN THE PROJECT AREA................................................................................................................. 116 E.3: MAP OF LOGGING CONCESSIONS IN THE PROJECT AREA..................................................................................................... 116 E.4: MAP OF MINING CONCESSIONS IN THE PROJECT AREA........................................................................................................ 118 ANNEXE F.1: THREATS AND ROOT CAUSES OF B IODIVERSITY LOSS IN TRIDOM..................................119 ANNEX G: LESSONS LEARNED AND INTEGRATION IN THE PROJECT