2 July 2012: The Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme (SGP) presented the results of a project to expand protected areas for migrating bird species in Zambia. GEF reports that as a result of the Mutulanganga Important Bird Areas (IBA) Conservation and Community Eco-Tourism Initiatives project, the area of the IBA has more than doubled to 62,000 hectares, providing an additional 35,000 hectares of undisturbed natural habitat for migrating birds and other species in the region.

The IBA project was partly funded with a US$39,500 GEF SGP grant, and implemented by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) from 2009-2011, as part of a wider effort to identify and protect a global network of sites that are critical for the long-term survival of all bird species and their habitats. Partners in the project include the Zambian Ornithological Society, the Zambia Wildlife Authority and Bird Life International.

The project has worked with local communities, which it says now have access to a variety of indigenous forest trees and skills to produce crafts using forest products sustainably. [GEF Press Release]