8 April 2012: The Global Environment Facility (GEF) approved a US$1 million grant for a project to mainstream marine and coastal biodiversity conservation into oil and gas sector development in Mauritania.

The “Partnership to Mainstream Marine and Coastal Biodiversity into Oil and Gas Sector Development in Mauritania,” project fits within the GEF Strategic Program on West Africa, that aims to implement strategies for preserving biodiversity in all production landscapes while promoting social benefits. The project will involve efforts to guide policy decisions of the offshore oil and gas industry to preserve Mauritania’s natural marine ecosystems. It was developed through a collaboration among the Government of Mauritania, the GEF, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

The project will strengthen the policy, legislative and financial instruments to better protect biodiversity and will work to improve the capacity of national stakeholders, and support the capitalization of national biodiversity finance mechanisms through private sector contributions. This will necessarily involve cooperation and participation by the oil and gas industry, policymakers, and private sector contributors. [GEF Press Release]