Our work

Through its Wildlife and Protected Areas Management Programme of Work, FAO actively supports Member countries in: 

• Pioneering innovative mechanisms to reduce unsustainable hunting practices, and ensuring a transition to more sustainable levels of hunting and less unsustainable wildlife consumptive uses in urban areas.  
• Strengthening institutional and legal frameworks, safeguarding Indigenous Peoples and building capacities to achieve sustainable wildlife management. 
• Providing technical assistance to prevent and reduce human-wildlife conflicts and promote co-existence, through an in-depth assessment of the root causes of conflicts.
• Enhancing ecosystem health, particularly in forest and wildlife sectors, to support One Health, ensuring the well-being of both wildlife and human communities as well as preventing, detecting and controlling diseases that spread between animals and humans.

Forestry Regional Commissions

The FAO's work on wildlife and protected areas management contributes significantly to the FAO Forestry Regional Commissions, particularly the African Forestry and Wildlife Commission (AFWC). By providing technical expertise, fostering collaboration, and implementing strategies for sustainable practices, the FAO supports the Commissions in achieving their goals related to the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife and protected areas management, particularly tailored to the specific needs and contexts of the African region. 

Global Processes 

• FAO assists Members in implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework by providing technical guidance on Targets 4, 5 and 9. 
• Under CITES, FAO supports Members in implementing decisions on livelihoods, IPLCs, zoonotic disease risk reduction in wildlife trade, and international cooperation. 
• FAO co-convenes the Scientific Task Force on Avian Influenza and Wild Birds with CMS, providing expertise on wildlife health and disease risks. 
• FAO assists Contracting Parties in implementing the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) and the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. 

Partnerships

Since 1997, the FAO Office for Latin America and the Caribbean has been the technical secretariat for the Latin American Technical Cooperation Network on National Parks, other Protected Areas and Wildlife (REDPARQUES).  

Since 2013, the FAO Forestry Division has served as the secretariat for the Collaborative Partnership on Sustainable Wildlife Management (CPW) and actively participates in various initiatives as a proactive member. 

Activities

SDGs correlation

Highlights