The Terai Arc Landscape initiative aims to protect a biodiversity hotspot shared by India and Nepal that was rapidly degrading. On Nepal’s side alone, more than 7.5 million people and a plethora of wildlife – tigers, rhinos, elephants, black bucks, buffaloes, crocodiles and birds – depend on the vast Terai Arc Landscape, stretching across 2.47 million hectares. As poaching, habitat loss, degradation and human tiger conflict increased, the forested area receded and wildlife decreased. 

The initiative – which started with the Government of Nepal’s launch of the Terai Arc Landscape Program in 2001 – has already brought back to life a forest area 13 times the size of Kathmandu, and nearly tripled its tiger population to 355 from 121. In the entire Terai Arc landscape, shared by India and Nepal, the population more than doubled to 1174. According to partners in the project, some 40 000 local community members engaged in community-based anti-poaching units, citizen science and nature-based tourism, as well as forest watchers. These initiatives are already improving the livelihoods of almost 500 000 households. 

Highlighted activities

Terai Arc Landscape is the first conservation landscape of Nepal initiated in early 2000 and first strategic plan was developed in 2004 for ten years. The second 10-year strategy was endorsed in 2015 which is currently under implementation. As the tenure of the strategic plan ends next year, it is time to develop a strategic plan for the next tenure. The targeted support project, therefore, proposes the development of a third 10-year strategic plan for the Terai Arc Landscape. The strategy and action plan will be developed assessing the causes of biodiversity loss and impacts of climate change in biodiversity and ecosystem services. All three tiers of governments-federal, provincial and local-civil society, local communities, indigenous people, and other relevant stakeholders will be engaged while developing the strategy and action plan. The project will also enhance multi stakeholder engagement in planning and implementing ecosystem restoration initiatives and landscape level conservation through increased capacity, coordination and partnership. The project will help capacitate federal, provincial and local governments in managing ecosystem restoration and landscape. 

The major outcomes include:  

i) development/revision of 10-year strategy and action plan of Terai Arc Landscape of Nepal. 

ii) increase multi-stakeholder partnership for ecosystem restoration and landscape level conservation. 

iii) develop documents capturing ecosystem restoration learnings and best practices and disseminate the learnings at national and international forums. 

iv) build capacity of local communities to upscale on-the-ground implementation of ecosystem restoration initiatives in the Terai Arc Landscape. 

Leading and partner organizations

• Department of Forests and Soil Conservation
• Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation