31 Oct 2016

 Botswana still remains committed to attaining high standards of environmental quality, nine years after signing the Tropical Forest Conservation Agreement with United States of America. Forest Conservation Botswana (FCB) board chairperson, Mr Felix Monggae, has said.

Mr Monggae who is also deputy permanent secretary in the Ministry of Environment, Natural Resource Conservation and Tourism said in his statement at the 2016 FCB Annual General Meeting.

As representatives appointed to oversee activities of FCB board, he said “we continue to ensure that funds are specifically used for eligible conservation projects.”

 “We owe gratitude to the US government for its support and pledge our commitment to the agreement in order to continue preserving our existing forest reserves and preventing deforestation as a strategy to address climate change,” he added.

By the end of financial year 2015/2016, he said a total of 34 projects were funded under the agreement, amounting to close to P24 million of approved funds.

Funds disbursed under this agreement, FCB board chairman said continued to improve local environmental conditions, promote sustainable resource use, build capacity on conservation management, provide knowledge through research on the use of indigenous plants and support the livelihoods of our people.

Minister Khama, in his statement during 2015 FCB AGM, Mr Monggae said called for FCB’s contribution to job creation. Following this call, he said the organisation had created 233 temporary jobs during the course of year 2016.

 “In addition, individual and private entities are now eligible to grants which is a commendable step,” he added.

He also expressed appreciation for the commencement of Strategic Environmental Assessment, which he said was the first milestone in development of Management Plans for the Chobe Forest Reserves. Botswana, Mr Monggae said successfully completed its loan repayment under the debt-for-nature initiate in January 2016, which ‘effectively means nearly P70 million has been paid out.’

 In his USA statement, on behalf of US Ambassador, Mr Earl Miller, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) country representative, Mr Blake Chrystal, said US government thought highly of FCB’s mission.

For that reason, Mr Chrystal said USA was dedicated to its efforts to protecting Botswana’s natural resources and improving the country’s economic outlook through ecotourism.

 “We are proud to be associated with FCB and remain committed to FCB’s operations and appreciate the opportunity to serve on the board to closely support the goals of the organisation with our time and energy,” he said.

With the inevitable slowdown in Botswana’s mineral resources and the expected growth in international tourism, he said the economic value of the country’s protected natural spaces would only continue to grow. ENDS