7 June 2014: On the occasion of World Environment Day, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Government of Haiti announced a project to strengthen the protection of forests within Macaya National Park. The park encompasses some of the last primary forest remaining in Haiti and contains the highest number of endemic amphibian species in the world.

The project will support the development of a green economy in the area around the park, including through the promotion of agroforestry. The approach is important given high levels of local poverty coupled with local dependence on resources from the park; local populations remove an estimated 200 trees a week from Macaya National Park, according to UNEP.

In addition to supporting sustainable livelihoods, the project will expand the network of marine and terrestrial protected areas in order to enhance connectivity within the Park. The project will also strengthen management of the protected area and address direct threats from forest fires, unsustainable agricultural practices and extraction by the forestry sector.

The project will be implemented through the Ministries of Agriculture and Environment under the framework of the Côte Sud Initiative, a UN coalition working to support sustainable development in Haiti’s South Department. [UNEP Press Release] [World Agroforestry Centre Press Release]