Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (OECM) reporting for the Hindu Kush Himalaya and South Asia

Organisers: ICIMOD, High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People (HAC), UNEP-WCMC

The webinar

ICIMOD, the High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People (HAC) and UNEP-WCMC are co-organising a regional capacity-building webinar on OECM reporting for the HKH and South Asia. The webinar will provide practical guidance on assessment, documentation, data requirements and reporting, helping bridge the gap between national OECM processes and their reporting and representation in global datasets, while respecting the rights, knowledge and governance systems of Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IPLCs).

Objectives

The webinar aims to:

• Build practical capacity on OECM reporting, including required data, supporting information, and data quality requirements for submission to WDPCA.
• Clarify reporting processes, requirements and institutional roles, while sharing regional experiences, lessons learned, and good practices from HKH and South Asia.
• Strengthen regional dialogue and collaboration among policymakers, practitioners, researchers, civil society organisations, and IPLCs to advance OECM recognition and reporting, while respecting and recognising the rights, knowledge and governance systems of IPLCs and strengthening contributions to KMGBF Target 3.

Target audience

The webinar is targeted for policymakers, government officials, protected area and conservation practitioners, OECM managers, researchers and academics, civil society organisations, IPLCs, and representatives of relevant sectors and institutions involved in area-based conservation, biodiversity data management, and reporting across the HKH and South Asia.

Background and rationale

The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), adopted in 2022, established a global commitment to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. Target 3 calls for at least 30% of terrestrial and inland water areas and 30% of marine and coastal areas to be effectively conserved and managed by 2030 through protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs), with emphasis on ecological representativeness and connectivity, effective and equitable governance, and recognition of the rights and contributions of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

Under CBD COP Decision 14/8 (2018), an OECM is “a geographically defined area other than a Protected Area, which is governed and managed in ways that achieve positive and sustained long-term outcomes for the in-situ conservation of biodiversity, with associated ecosystem functions and services and, where applicable, cultural, spiritual, socioeconomic and other locally relevant values.” OECMs recognise conservation outcomes outside formally designated protected areas under diverse governance and management arrangements and can complement protected areas by expanding conserved-area coverage and strengthening ecological connectivity and representation.

Countries are increasingly developing policies and processes to implement Target 3 and identify potential OECMs. However, translating national recognition and designation into consistent, quality-assured, and internationally reportable data remains a challenge. This is particularly relevant in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) and South Asia, where conservation is supported through diverse community-based, Indigenous, traditional, sectoral, and other management systems.

Reporting progress towards Target 3 relies on data about protected areas and OECMs. The Protected Planet Initiative, through the World Database on Protected and Conserved Areas (WDPCA), integrates data from the former World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on OECMs (WD-OECM). Effective reporting therefore requires clarity on OECM assessment, documentation, verification, data requirements, roles and responsibilities, and submission and maintenance through Protected Planet/WDPCA.