BOTSWANA FOURTH NATIONAL REPORT TO THE CONVENTION OF BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY

Abstract

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The handbook of the Convention on Biological Diversity including its Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety states that Biodiversity is the term given to the variety of life on Earth including plants, animals, and micro-organisms, as well as the ecosystems of which they are part. Biodiversity includes genetic differences within species, the diversity of species and the variety ecosystems. It is the result of the interaction of species including humans, with one another and with the air, water and soil around them. This combination of life forms-ecosystems, species and genetic varieties- has made Earth a uniquely habitable place and provides the goods and services that sustain our lives, such as clean air and water, food and medicine, fuel, fiber and material for construction. Our cultures are founded upon the different environments in which they have developed (CBD Handbook, 2005). In addition to its intrinsic value, biodiversity provides goods and services that underpin sustainable development in many important ways, thus contributing to poverty alleviation. The rate of biodiversity loss is increasing at an unprecedented rate, threatening the very existence of life as it is currently understood.