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The National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan is a cross-sectoral national strategic document of Grenada for the period of 2016-2020. Its main objective is to provide a holistic and practical framework for actions on conservation and sustainable use of national biodiversity for enhanced human wellbeing and livelihoods.The strategic priorities to achieve the objective are enhanced national capacity for biodiversity conservation and sustainable use and key national ecosystems restored and sustainably managed. The national priority targets include: education, information, public awareness, valuation and importance of biodiversity infused in national programming and decision making; integration, mainstreaming and linkages of biodiversity conservation and sustainable use established across all decision making levels; biodiversity knowledge, science and technology shared and applied and national capacity built; adequate resources are made available for biodiversity conservation and sustainable use and the strategic document is fully implemented; key national terrestrial and marine ecosystems are restored and sustainably managed. The priority ecosystems are forest, agriculture, fresh water and coastal and marine areas. For these priority areas, the Strategy and Action Plan aims to extend and consolidate forest replanting, rehabilitation and restoration programme and mangrove forest replanting programme; maintain protected areas status on the national forest ecosystem and extend forest cover beyond 17% while ensuring same is sustainably managed; strengthen regulatory framework for National Parks and Protected Areas; enhanced management of designated Ramsar site and document lessons learnt for designation of future sites; protect terrestrial biodiversity, wildlife and endangered species through active enforcement of legislation on natural resource extraction, species introduction and land use change; implement the national land use policy and sustainable land management plan to avert unsustainable land use change and land use intensification; ensure that biodiversity conservation issues are mainstreamed in national land policies and related legislation; embark on sustainable agricultural production systems including restricted use of inorganic fertilizers insecticides and pesticides, genetically modified organisms, introduction of alien species managing nutrient discharge and pollution, combating soil erosion and land degradation and safeguarding genetic diversity; establish, implement and monitor protocols for nutrient discharge and pollution, introduction of alien species, water extraction, unsustainable agricultural practices, saline intrusion and over exploitation of freshwater species; elaborate and implement a comprehensive watershed management plan and water harvesting distribution and utilization programme; double the current coverage of marine protected areas and establish systems for sustainable management of marine protected areas; develop national coastal zones policy and mainstream biodiversity conservation issues; monitor, report and enforce legislation on unsustainable terrestrial practices, coastal infrastructure development, tourism development, mangrove distinction, pollution and waste management, illegal extraction (in particular sand mining) and species, over exploitation and introductions; embark on initiatives to build national resilience to mitigate the impacts of climate change and national disasters in the marine and coastal ecosystems; and consolidate the mangrove replanting and rehabilitation programme; establish a coral reef rehabilitation programme and sustainable recreational and tourism development programme.The Forestry Division, the Fisheries Division, the Pest Management Unit, the National Watershed Management and Water Resources Unit, the Protected Areas Unit, the Agricultural Extension Unit and the Livestock Management Unit of the Ministry of Agriculture, Lands, Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment are expected to shoulder the implementation agenda in accordance with their specific mandates.
