THE UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA VICE PRESIDENT’S OFFICE National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) 2015 - 2020 DIVISION OF ENVIRONMENT OCTOBER, 2015 Published by the Vice President's Office, Division of Environment, United Republic of Tanzania, Dar es salaam 2015 Copyright © 2015, Division of Environment, Vice President's Office, URT ISBN: 978 - 9987- 807- 01- 7 This publication may be reproduced for educational or non- profit purposes without special permission from the copy right holders provided acknowledgement of the source is made. The Vice President's Office would appreciate receiving a copy of any publication that uses this publication as a source. For further information, please contact: Division of Environment, Vice President's Office, P.O BOX 5380, Dar es Salaam. TANZANIA. Phone: +255-222-2113857/2116995 Fax: +255-22-211113856/2113082 E-mail: [email protected] i TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................................... iv LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................................. iv LIST OF PLATES .................................................................................................................................v PREFACE ............................................................................................................................................ vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .................................................................................................................. vii ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ........................................................................................ viii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................................. xi CHAPTER ONE ................................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 The Value of Biodiversity to Tanzania .................................................................. 1 1.2 Biodiversity Conservation Initiatives ..................................................................... 2 1.3 Rationale ............................................................................................................. 3 1.4 Scope and Objectives of the NBSAP ................................................................... 3 1.4.1 Scope of the NBSAP ................................................................................ 3 1.4.2 Objectives of the NBSAP ......................................................................... 3 1.5 Preparation Process of the Revised NBSAP ........................................................ 4 1.6 Structure of the NBSAP 2015 - 2020 ................................................................... 5 CHAPTER TWO ................................................................................................................................. 6 LOCATION, CLIMATE AND PHYSICAL FEATURES.................................................................. 6 2.1 Location .............................................................................................................. 6 2.2 Climate .............................................................................................................. 7 2.3 Physical Features ................................................................................................ 8 2.4 Agro-climatic Zones ............................................................................................. 8 CHAPTER THREE ........................................................................................................................... 11 BIODIVERSITY STATUS AND TRENDS .................................................................................... 11 3.1 Ecosystem Status .............................................................................................. 11 3.1.1 Terrestrial ecosystems ........................................................................... 11 3.1.2 Coastal and marine ecosystems ............................................................ 12 3.1.3 Freshwater Ecosystems ......................................................................... 13 3.2 Species Diversity ............................................................................................... 14 3.2.1 Overall species diversity ......................................................................... 14 3.2.2 Endemic species .................................................................................... 14 3.2.3 Threatened and endangered species ..................................................... 15 3.3 Genetic Diversity ............................................................................................... 17 3.4 Protected Areas ................................................................................................. 18 3.4.1 Terrestrial Protected Areas .................................................................... 18 3.4.2 Marine Protected Areas .......................................................................... 22 3.5 Trends in the Status of Biodiversity .................................................................... 24 3.5.1 Positive Trends ...................................................................................... 24 3.5.2 Regressive Trends ................................................................................. 26 3.6 Initiatives to Support Biodiversity Conservation ................................................. 30 3.7 Financing Mechanism for Biodiversity Conservation .......................................... 34 3.7.1 Internal mechanisms ............................................................................... 34 3.7.2 External Mechanisms .............................................................................. 35 3.7.3 Incentives for Conservation ..................................................................... 35 3.8 Lessons learnt from the NBSAP 2001 ................................................................ 36 CHAPTER FOUR .............................................................................................................................. 41 THREATS TO BIODIVERSITY ..................................................................................................... 41 4.1 Main Threats ...................................................................................................... 41 4.1.1 Habitat loss and degradation .................................................................. 41 4.1.2 Overexploitation of plant and animal species ......................................... 43 ii 4.1.3 Pollution ................................................................................................. 44 4.1.4 Introduction of Invasive Alien species ..................................................... 45 4.1.5 Oil and gas exploration and extraction ................................................... 46 4.1.6 Genetic erosion ...................................................................................... 47 4.2 Underlying Causes ............................................................................................ 47 4.2.1 Socio-economic and cultural environment causes .................................. 47 4.2.2 Climate change associated causes ........................................................ 50 4.2.3 Inadequate Policy, Legal and Institutional Response ............................. 51 4.3 Impacts of Changes In Biodiversity .................................................................... 53 4.3.1 Impacts on ecological environment ........................................................ 53 4.3.2 Impacts on human well-being ................................................................. 53 CHAPTER FIVE ................................................................................................................................ 55 POLICY, LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK......................................................... 55 5.1 Policies ............................................................................................................ 55 5.2 Legislation ......................................................................................................... 60 5.3 Other Supporting Documents ............................................................................ 64 5.4 Institutional Arrangement ................................................................................... 65 5.5 Regional and International Cooperation Related to Biodiversity Conservation ... 67 CHAPTER SIX ................................................................................................................................... 72 THE STRATEGY: PRINCIPLES, GOALS AND TARGETS ........................................................ 72 6.1 Vision ............................................................................................................ 72 6.2 Mission ............................................................................................................ 72 6.3 Principles Governing the Strategy ...................................................................... 72 6.4 Strategic Goals .................................................................................................