CABES - Capacity Development for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Experts in West, Central & East Africa

The project will develop and strengthen expertise in West, Central, and East Africa to engage in IPBES. It will inform national decision-making processes amongst multiple stakeholder groups to support the implementation of political decisions for better management and sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystem services/nature’s contributions to people. Target groups include researchers, practitioners from the public and private sectors, as well as non-governmental organisations, indigenous and local knowledge holders and women. The project will establish a network of science-policy platforms to contribute to the implementation of the IPBES work programmes at different levels: nationally in eight countries, sub-regionally (15 countries in West Africa, ten countries in Central Africa and 13 countries in East Africa) and regionally in 38 countries. The project will train early career scientists, researchers and facilitators to manage science-policy interfaces.

Project data

Countries: Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Madagascar, Sierra Leone
IKI funding: 7,988,000.00 €
Duration: 02/2022 till 01/2030
Status: open
Implementing organisation: Universität Bonn
Political Partner: Ethiopia Biodiversity Institute (EBI)

Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAA) – Cape Verde

Ministry of Environment, Green Economy and Climate Change (MEEVCC) - Burkina Faso

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development - Madagascar

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development - Côte d’Ivoire

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development - DR Congo

Ministry of Water, Forest, Ocean, Environment responsible for the climate plan, sustainable development ojectives, land use plan and IPBES Focal Point - Gabon

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) & CBD National Focal Point of Sierra Leone
Implementing Partner: Addis Ababa University, Horn of Africa Regional Environment Center and Network (HoAREC)

African Center of Excellence on Climate Change, Biodiversity and Sustainable Agriculture (CEA CCBAD)

CoKnow Consulting

UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC)

University of Lubumbashi (FSA-UNILU)

West African Science Service Centre on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL)
Online: https://www.cabes.online/

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State of implementation/results

On June 25-26, 2025, CoKnow hosted an online training on “Resource mobilization for biodiversity conservation in Africa” attended by 365 participants from 43 countries.
In March 2025, Burkina Faso formally established its National Biodiversity Platform through Decree No. 2024-187/MEEA/CAB, strengthening the integration of science and policy for biodiversity and ecosystem services.
Côte d'Ivoire established its national biodiversity platform in February 2025.
In November 2024, CoKnow launched the first self-paced course on the CABES e-learning portal on “Developing national Science-Policy-Practice Interface platforms and networks”. Until March, 10, 2025, 16 participants completed the course with a certificate.
On October 2 - 3, 2024, the first SPIBES Cohort of the SPIBES M.Sc. programme on Climate Change, Biodiversity, Policy, and Practice at the UFHB, Côte d‘Ivoire, successfully defended their theses and graduated. A total of 23 students from 23 African countries completed the program. 15 graduates came from ECOWAS countries (West Africa); four from Central Africa and four from Eastern Africa.
In September 2024, building on the success of the first cohort of the SPIBES M.Sc. programme at the University of Felix Houphouet Boigny (UFHB), Côte d‘Ivoire, two additional universities: Addis Ababa University (AAU-HoAREC) targeting Eastern African youths, and the University of Lubumbashi (UNILU), targeting Central African youths, commenced their SPIBES MSc. programs. A total of 37 students were selected from across Africa.
On March 19-20, 2024, CABES conducted a training on “Design, Setting up, and Running a Master Programme on Managing Science-Policy-Practice Interfaces in Biodiversity, Ecosystem Services, and Climate Change (SPIBES)” with 110 participants from 17 countries
The CABES Capacity Development Programme for professionals started with the launch of the CABES e-learning portal. A first online course “Train the Trainers – developing, organizing and teaching online courses” in October 2023 was delivered to more than 40 participants from 22 different countries in Africa and beyond.
CABES organized jointly with the Climate & Development Knowledge Network its first face-to-face training in November 2023 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on “Utilization of IPBES assessment outcomes in national policy making“. The training brought together 21 participants from 18 countries. Amongst the participants were IPBES and CBD national focal points, as well as scientists from East, Central and West Africa who discussed tactics and strategies for the uptake of IPBES outcomes.
In November 2023, CABES organised its first sub-regional East African workshop with the theme: ‘The Road to a Desired Future: the IPBES Nature Futures Framework and Science-Policy-Practice Interface for People-Planet Harmony’.
CABES organised a workshop on: “Achieving Transformative Change through National Multistakeholder Biodiversity Platforms in Africa” in August 2023, targeting IPBES National Focal Points from National platform countries.
CABES co-organised a workshop with the National Ecosystem Assessment Initiative at UNEP-WCMC on: “Peer-to-Peer Dialogue: The Role of National Biodiversity Platforms in Realizing an Ambitious Future for Nature and People” in August 2023. There were 45 participants in attendance.
Project achievements have led to the accession of the Republic of Guinea as the 141st member of IPBES in July, 2023.
CABES has accredited the Master's programme entitled “Managing Science-Policy and Interface in Biodiversity, Ecosystem Services and Climate Change" at the University Félix Houphouet-Boigny in Côte d'Ivoire.