Poor Funding Threatens UNDP Conservation Programme

Poor funding is now threatening activities of the United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) sponsored Niger Delta Biodiversity Conservation Programme.
Sources within the Port Harcourt office of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) disclosed that since the beginning of this year, no activities have been carried out by the office in the region as far as conservation was concerned.
According to the sources who spoke to The Tide via a telephone interview, no conservation programme is going on at the moment as far as the Niger Delta Biodiversity Conservation Programme was concerned.
They also told The Tide that staff of the conservation programme had not been paid their salaries and entitlements for several months, while some key staff of the Port Harcourt office had resigned their appointment.
According to the sources, the problem is not only affecting the wellbeing of the staff, and their families but the overall success and gains made within the last three years of the programme.
They said that the next phase of the programme which is conservation of some animal species in the region is also being threatened.
They however added that the annual starring committee and review meeting of the programme will still hold later in the year.
The Niger Delta Biodiversity Programme (UNDP) is an integral part of the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) programme for West Africa (SPNA).
“It is under the sub-component on biodiversity and it concerns the programme which is mainstreaming biodiversity in production landscapes and sectors.”
According to a publication made available to The Tide, the projects goal is to contribute to the conservation and sustainable use of globally significant biological diversity in the Niger Delta.
The programme covers four states in the region. The States are Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta and Akwa Ibom.