National Biodiversity Strategy And Action Plan (NBSAP)

India has unveiled its revised National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) during the 16th Conference of Parties (COP 16) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in November 2024. This plan serves as a vital framework to conserve biodiversity while promoting sustainable use and equitable benefit sharing across the country.

The updated NBSAP aligns with global biodiversity goals and addresses India’s unique ecological challenges. It sets ambitious targets to protect ecosystems, restore degraded habitats, and involve communities actively in biodiversity governance.

The Purpose And Framework of NBSAP

Legal Mandate for Biodiversity Planning

According to Article 6 of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD), all member countries must formulate National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans. These plans are essential tools to implement biodiversity conservation and sustainable development goals within each nation.

Core Objectives of the Plan

India’s NBSAP acts as the primary mechanism to integrate biodiversity concerns into national policies. It focuses on conserving biological diversity, encouraging sustainable resource use, and ensuring that benefits derived from biodiversity are shared fairly among communities.

Alignment with Global Biodiversity Frameworks

The 2024 NBSAP is fully aligned with the Kunming Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), which sets four overarching goals and 23 targets. India’s plan adapts these global objectives to fit its national priorities and capacities.

Key Elements of India’s Biodiversity Action Plan

Comprehensive Conservation Strategy: The strategy includes protecting both terrestrial and marine ecosystems, restoring damaged habitats, and reducing threats from pollution and invasive species. It emphasizes protecting species, sustainable harvesting of wild resources, and creating wildlife corridors to maintain ecological connectivity.
Community Involvement and Governance: A significant focus of the plan is on involving local communities in biodiversity management. It promotes participatory governance to ensure sustainable and inclusive conservation outcomes.
Enhancing Urban Biodiversity: The plan also highlights the importance of increasing access to green spaces in cities, recognizing urban biodiversity’s role in improving quality of life.

Origins of the Convention on Biological Diversity

The CBD was established in 1992 with the aim of safeguarding global biodiversity. Under the convention, countries must develop NBSAPs as a central strategy for conservation and sustainable use.

Monitoring and Accountability

Parties to the CBD are required to submit progress reports every four years, ensuring transparency and accountability in implementing biodiversity commitments.

Priorities and Thematic Areas of NBSAP 2024-30

Reducing Threats to Biodiversity

This theme addresses eight specific targets focused on major challenges:

Changes in land and sea use
Pollution control
Overexploitation of species
Climate change mitigation
Managing invasive alien species

Additionally, targets aim at ecosystem restoration, species and genetic diversity management, and ensuring the sustainable legal use of wildlife.

Sustainable Use and Benefit Sharing

Five targets under this theme promote sustainable management of key sectors vital to rural livelihoods, such as agriculture, livestock, fisheries, and forests. The plan also focuses on ensuring fair distribution of benefits, improving ecosystem services, and enhancing urban residents’ access to natural spaces.

Implementation Tools and Solutions

Ten targets concentrate on integrating biodiversity with broader development goals. These include promoting sustainable production and consumption, reducing waste, reallocating harmful subsidies, skill development, knowledge sharing, mobilizing resources, and fostering inclusive, gender-sensitive biodiversity governance.

Ambitious Targets and Priority Actions

Expanding Protected Areas: India aims to increase Protected Areas and Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs) to cover 30% of its landscapes, underscoring the critical role of communities in conservation efforts.
Ecosystem Restoration Goals: Acknowledging widespread ecosystem degradation caused by activities like agriculture expansion, mining, and urbanization, the plan commits to restoring at least 30% of degraded terrestrial, inland water, coastal, and marine ecosystems by 2030.
Tackling Overconsumption and Waste: Target 16 specifically addresses the root causes of biodiversity loss related to excessive consumption and waste. The government has initiated Mission Life, promoting environmentally conscious lifestyles to mitigate these pressures.