Ananta Ram Bhandari

Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs) are not replacements for protected areas but vital complements as they recognise landscapes to equally deliver effective conservation outcomes At the UN Biodiversity Summit during the 75th General Assembly in New York, Nepal proudly stated: "Twenty-three per cent of our geography has been designated as protected area, and we have achieved Aichi Target 11.

Restoring forest requires local action Forests are heavily exploited in Nepal’s Terai region with growing fragmentation of the contiguous expanse of forests in the region. Following the eradication of malaria in the 1960s, large scale migration from the hills to the low-lying region of Terai due to its fertile plains and accessibility has resulted in declining forest cover. For instance, deforestation rates stood at 1.3% per annum between 1979 and 1991.

Half the world’s biodiversity and half the quarter of world’s population reside along the mountains. And a half of the world’s population quenches its thirst from melt water originating from the planet’s mountain glaciers. The water fed by these perennial mountain river systems have also become sources of energy through hydropower, irrigation for agriculture, and large water related economies downstream.