Regional Centre of Excellence - RCoE

09/08/2026

Still at it!

The IMET Assessment at Mohéli National Marine Park continues, and we’re not slowing down!

We’re on it all weekend, working through the assessment, discussions, and reflections with stakeholders to better understand what is working, where the gaps are, and how we can strengthen the management and conservation of this important marine protected area.

Long days, rich discussions, and lots of learning, but the mission remains clear: stronger protected area management and better outcomes for nature and communities.

07/08/2026

Our team is currently in Comoros, Moheli. We are on Day 2 of the IMET Assessment at Mohéli National Marine Park.

We kicked off the day bright and early, and the discussions and assessments are progressing well. Through this collaborative process, stakeholders are working together to evaluate the park's management effectiveness and identify opportunities to strengthen the conservation of one of the Western Indian Ocean's most important marine ecosystems.

06/08/2026

🚨 ONE DAY TO GO!

Tomorrow, we launch our Online Professional Course: Transforming Maps into Stories & Data into Decisions!

Join us online as we kick off this exciting two-week learning journey and explore how geospatial technologies can turn conservation data into compelling stories, actionable insights and informed decisions.

📅 10 August 2026
⏰ 11:00 AM EAT
💻 Join the launch via Microsoft Teams: https://tinyurl.com/bdx5p5mb

🗺️ Web Maps & StoryMaps | 📊 Data Dashboards | 🌐 GeoHex Applications

Transform maps. Tell stories. Turn data into decisions.

See you at the launch!


^AS

03/08/2026

BOESA is officially live.
Last week at our SBSTTA-28 side event, we launched the Biodiversity Outlook for Eastern & Southern Africa (BOESA) — and the panel discussion that preceded it surfaced some powerful reflections on where the region's conservation efforts stand.

Key takeaways from our panellists — Ntakadzeni Tshidada (SANBI), Sharon Ruthia (CBD Women's Caucus), Lucy Mulenkei (Indigenous Information Network), and Mary Kyanyi (Power Shift Africa/GYBN-Africa):

🔹 Technical Support Centres must go beyond data hosting to actively bridge science and policy. TSCCs play a critical role in improving African data representation in global assessments, this building on lessons from supporting countries through 7th National Reporting. TSCC can then are uniquely positioned to strengthen the science policy interface in Africa by bridging the gap between generation and policy implementation, rather than just acting as institution that serve as knowledge brokers and capacity builders.
🔹 Gender-responsive implementation of the KM-GBF demands structural change; direct, flexible financing, gender-disaggregated data, real decision-making power for women and dedicated gender focal points in national reporting mechanisms.
🔹 It is important to recognise the value of traditional knowledge that indigenous Peoples embody and the value that has in biodiversity conservation. Indigenous knowledge protection matters as much as its integration — biocultural protocols and free, prior, informed consent are non-negotiable. There is need to include IPLCs in decision-making, have participatory approaches in all processes, especially when it comes to conservation.
🔹 Youth are already doing the restoration work — largely unfunded and under-recognised. We need to appreciate the youth more, not just in terms of documenting, but also involvement in decision-making and more at government level even when generating national reports.

The BOESA platform has three key features; a KM-GBF Target 3 tracker, a WDPA validator tool for standardising protected-area data, and a KM-GBF Capacity Needs Assessment (CNA) tool covering 8 dimensions.

In case you missed the side-event, watch it here: https://youtu.be/KQHgy2l-CoQ

Explore the platform and be part of shaping its data: https://rcoe-boesa.rcmrd.org/


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Last week at our side event, we launched the Biodiversity...

31/07/2026

BOESA is a living platform — meaning it'll keep growing with more data, stories, and tools over time. Check it out and see how your community's conservation work can be part of the bigger picture.

Explore BOESA here: https://rcoe-boesa.rcmrd.org/


^AS

31/07/2026

We did it — BOESA is live! 🌍🎉

Launched today at our side event, the Biodiversity Outlook for Eastern & Southern Africa (BOESA) is a new platform to track and support biodiversity conservation across our region.

Before the big reveal, our panel of experts shared some real talk on what it takes to protect our ecosystems: the power of indigenous knowledge, the need for women's voices in decision-making, the incredible (and often unpaid) work young people are already doing, and the funding gaps holding everyone back.

BOESA is a living platform — meaning it'll keep growing with more data, stories, and tools over time. Check it out and see how your community's conservation work can be part of the bigger picture.

Explore BOESA here: https://rcoe-boesa.rcmrd.org/


^AS

31/07/2026

Ntakadzen Tshidada of will be speaking at the launch later today.

She will tackle a question at the heart of the 's success: how do we strengthen the science-policy interface across our region?

She will also delve into the role regional and subregional technical support centres should play in building countries' capacity for biodiversity monitoring, reporting, and knowledge exchange; where institutions like SANBI can add the most value in bridging science and policy for KM-GBF implementation- that's the conversation Ntakadzeni brings to the table.

📍 Hybrid: CR-9 (Africa), 2nd Flr, UNON
🗓️ 31 July 2026 | 🕐 13:15 – 14:45
🔗 bit.ly/4f39asj

Don't miss it. 🦜


^AS

31/07/2026

In less than 5 hours at the launch at our side event, Sharon Ruthia, a Legal & Governance Professional representing the CBD Women's Caucus dwomencaucus will lead a critical conversation: what does gender-responsive implementation of the KM-GBF actually look like in practice?

She'll unpack:
1. What national biodiversity institutions need to put in place to make gender-responsive implementation real, not just rhetorical
2. Policies and programmes that have moved the needle on gender equality in biodiversity decision-making — and where the gaps still remain
3. The barriers still limiting women's full and meaningful participation in biodiversity governance
4. How regional initiatives and technical support mechanisms can help countries mainstream gender considerations across planning, implementation, and reporting

📍 Hybrid: CR-9 (Africa), 2nd Flr, UNON
🗓️ 31 July 2026 | 🕐 13:15 – 14:45
🔗 bit.ly/4f39asj

Don't miss it. 🦜

^AS

31/07/2026

Lucy Mulenkei, the Executive Director of the The Indigenous Information Network (IIN) Kenya (IIN) will be speaking at the launch.
She will be speaking to a questions central to genuine conservation impact:
1. what does meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities actually look like, beyond consultation?
2. How Indigenous and local knowledge can be more effectively woven together with scientific evidence to strengthen conservation and ecosystem restoration

Because the people who've stewarded these landscapes for generations belong at the centre of the conversation, not the margins.

📍 Hybrid: CR-9 (Africa), 2nd Flr, UNON
🗓️ 31 July 2026 | 🕐 13:15 – 14:45
🔗 bit.ly/4f39asj
Don't miss it. 🦜


^AS

31/07/2026

Ahead of today's launch at our side event, we're featuring Mary Kyanyi, a Climate Adaptation and Resilience Fellow at Power Shift Africa & a representative of GYBN Africa.

Mary will lead the conversation on youth leadership for biodiversity action; a question shaping the next chapter of conservation across our region.

She'll unpack:
1. How young people across Eastern and Southern Africa are already driving conservation, restoration, and KM-GBF implementation on the ground
2. How youth can be more meaningfully engaged in shaping and implementing National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs), and in reporting
3. The practical steps needed to strengthen intergenerational collaboration; so young people are recognised not just as beneficiaries, but as equal partners in biodiversity governance

Because the future of conservation is being shaped by young leaders today, not tomorrow.

📍 Hybrid: CR-9 (Africa), 2nd Flr, UNON
🗓️ 31 July 2026 | 🕐 13:15 – 14:45
🔗 bit.ly/4f39asj

Don't miss it. 🦜


^AS