Series: ADB Participation at the 2024 United Nations Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP16)
Flyways as a Mechanism to Scale Up Nature-Positive Impact in Asia and the Pacific
24 October 2024

The ADB Regional Flyway Initiative (RFI) is one of ADB’s flagship nature-positive programs, aiming to scale up wetlands' protection and sustainable management along the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. In collaboration with the East-Asian Australasian Flyway Partnership (EAAFP) and key delivery partner BirdLife International, the RFI has now started to see progress in its aim of mobilizing $3 billion for the initiative over the next ten years, and in 2024, we are now seeing project loans and grants being processed.

The success of the RFI is now being replicated in other regions through the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), Audubon, and BirdLife International through the Americas Flyway Initiative, and there is now growing interest in developing further flyway-focused programs for the Africa-Eurasia Flyway and Central Asian Flyway.

Given the growing interest, this session explored experiences from the different flyways to examine why flyways could serve as a mechanism to deliver regional impact for wetland conservation, support livelihoods, and strengthen climate resilience. The session also considered whether different approaches were needed for the various flyways and how partnerships could be built to advance these regional initiatives beyond the high-interest ‘development phase’ to the critical ‘implementation phase.’

The event included a keynote presentation from BirdLife International introducing flyways and a panel discussion with different organizations involved in flyways, including Audubon and Agence Française de Développement (AFD).

The Philippines, Cambodia, and Japan governments also shared their experiences at the country level, providing perspectives on challenges and opportunities and discussing potential strategies to address the funding gap.

The session concluded with remarks from the World Bank, which offered insights on the different approaches needed for each flyway.

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Program and Learning Materials
Session / Activity Title Speaker(s)
Introduction Duncan Lang, Senior Environment Specialist, Asian Development Bank
Message of Support Video Message Jennifer George, Chief Executive, East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership Secretariat
Keynote Presentation Importance of Flyways Martin Harper, CEO, BirdLife International
Progress Update on the Regional Flyway Initiative (RFI) Duncan Lang, Senior Environment Specialist, Asian Development Bank
Panel Discussion Panelists:
Marshall Johnson, Chief Conservation Officer, Audubon
Marie-Cécile Thirion, Agence Française de Développement
Ruth Tiffer-Sotomayor, Senior Environment Specialist, World Bank
Wataru Suzuki, Director, Ministry of Environment, Japan
Questions and Answers All Panelists
Panel Quickfire Wrap-up All Panelists
Closing Remarks Jerker Tamelander, Director of Science and Policy, Ramsar Secretariat

Disclaimer

The views expressed on this website are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. By making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area, or by using the term “country” in this document, ADB does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area.

Event Coordinator/s

  • Duncan Lang

ADB Organizer/s

  • Climate Change, Resilience, and Environment Cluster

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Topics

  • Environment