By Sharon Atieno Onyango
Expanding conservation areas is not enough for the Eastern and Southern Africa region to achieve the global biodiversity target of conserving 30% of the land, water and seas by 2030.
This effort must be accompanied by effective management, strong governance, reliable monitoring, accessible biodiversity data, technical capacity, recognition of Indigenous Peoples and Local communities, adequate financing and regional cooperation.
This is according to recommendations by the newly launched Biodiversity Outlook for Eastern & Southern Africa (BOESA), a regional resource designed to strengthen access to biodiversity knowledge and support evidence-based conservation and policy action.
Covering 24 countries in Eastern and Southern Africa, BOESA was developed by the Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD) in collaboration with the European Union(EU). It was launched during the Regional Workshop on Integrated Landscape-Seascape Modelling for Climate Resilience Development in East Africa, taking place in Nairobi from 22–24 September 2026.
The countries include Botswana, Burundi, Comoros, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somali, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
BOESA reports that across the region about 17% of terrestrial areas have been conserved, covering approximately 2.62million km2. The progress however varies across sub-regions. For instance, though the East African Community has a substantial network of protected and conserved area, marine protection remains critically low.The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) countries also face significant terrestrial and marine coverage gaps.
In contrast, Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) countries have surpassed the 30% threshold for marine protection while the Southern African Development Community (SADC) records the highest terrestrial and marine coverage among the sub-regions covered.
According to Dr Emmanuel Nkurunziza, RCMRD’s Director General, lack of data was a big weakness hindering achievement of targets. Countries would make political commitments to landscape conservation and rehabilitation without any baseline data or follow-up mechanisms to verify actual progress.
However, he notes that centres like the RCMRD are able to provide the data, clear baselines and indicators of improvement to show the progress made by each country. Comparisons across countries can also be conducted using standardized metrics.
“This publication reflects the importance of bringing together data, knowledge and regional experiences to support informed decisions for biodiversity conservation,” Dr. Nkurunziza said.
“By making this information more accessible, we aim to support policymakers, conservation practitioners, researchers, development partners and communities in advancing nature-positive action across the region.”
The publication is developed under the Regional Centre of Excellence for Biodiversity, Forests, and Seascape Ecosystems Management in Eastern and Southern Africa (RCoE-ESA) initiative supported by the EU to improve data-driven decision-making to sustainably manage forests, biodiversity, and marine/seascape ecosystems.
“We have seen many programmes over the years conduct incredibly valuable research, but we often lack the next step of translating it into policy and, therefore, into action. Collecting data is not enough,” said Sanne Willems, Regional Partnerships,EU Delegation to Kenya.
“This programme is translating that data into very accessible information for young people as well as decision-makers, while also building the capacities of different countries to take action based on the information collected.”
The launch comes at a critical time as countries work towards the 2030 targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF). It also precedes the 17th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17), scheduled to take place in Yerevan, Armenia, from 19–30 October 2026.
COP17 will feature the first global review of collective progress in implementing the KMGBF, making regional knowledge products such as BOESA important references for understanding progress, identifying gaps and strengthening action for nature.
As countries intensify efforts to meet the 2030 biodiversity targets, BOESA provides a platform for shared learning, regional visibility and stronger collaboration towards a nature-positive future.
