Namibia gets N$ 186 million to manage environment

WINDHOEK, 18 JUL – The Ministry of Environment and Tourism has received N$186.34 million from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to undertake interventions in managing the environment.
The money is aimed at strengthening resilience to climate change, conserve and sustainably manage biodiversity, prevent land degradation and restore degraded land from 2018 to 2022.
Speaking at a media conference here on Tuesday, line Minister Pohamba Shifeta said the allocations per focal area for Namibia is N$13.44 million for climate change mitigation, N$ 84 million for biodiversity management and N$88.9 million in combating land degradation.
Shifeta emphasised that as the focal ministry for GEF, it should design bankable programmes and projects to capitalise on the allocations.
“The expected programmes and projects will target national priorities and challenges as well and also aligns with the national planning targets set to achieve the objectives of the Rio Conventions [Action on Adaptation],” he said.
The convention addresses the need for adaptation to climate change.
Shifeta noted that given the current economic challenges Namibia is facing and the potential of the tourism sector, developing wildlife-based tourism will be the primary focus area.
He added that it will include interventions to mitigate the costs of living with wildlife as well as interventions to enhance the benefits to communities from the tourism sector.
Shifeta added that since the implementation of GEF in 1998, Namibia has been able to implement over 30 national projects worth approximately N$ 954 million.
GEF was established at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit to help tackle the planet’s most pressing environmental problems. Since then, the GEF has provided over U.S. dollar 17.9 billion in grants and mobilised an additional U.S. dollar 93.2 billion in co-financing for more than 4 500 projects in 170 countries.
Today, the GEF is an international partnership of 183 countries, international institutions, civil society organisations and the private sector that addresses global environmental issues.
(NAMPA)