GBIF has signed a new five-year contract with the European Union (EU) that will support a new cycle of data mobilization and capacity development projects through its flagship Biodiversity Information for Development (BID) programme.
The renewed funding from the European Commission's Directorate General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA) represents a vote of confidence in BID's effectiveness in helping countries in the target regions meet their biodiversity knowledge needs under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
Upcoming GBIF regional node meetings will initiate the next programme BID cycle, as GBIF Secretariat and node staff, invited partners and observers convene in Oceania (Pacific) (September 2024), Africa (November 2024, more details to follow) and the Caribbean (details to follow) to identify and prioritize specific gaps in capacity as well as taxonomic and geographic information in these areas. Their recommendations, along with those of a renewed BID programme steering committee, will help set key criteria for selecting a portfolio of data mobilization projects in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific islands, with a first call for project proposals are expected in 2025.
"GBIF's BID programme has demonstrated its effectiveness at filling information gaps, but its approach to capacity development has been transformative in achieving its goals for data mobilization and use," said Thierry Dudermel, team leader for biodiversity at DG INTPA. "The impact of enhancing skills and capacities that individuals and institutions gain through training workshops—and extend through replication events—serves to sustaining future biodiversity research and other activities."
"BID has consistently increased the availability and use of open data on biodiversity while also establishing new national, regional and global collaborations," said Joe Miller, GBIF executive secretary. "We expect this new agreement will yield further accomplishments, reinforcing the findings of the external evaluation that highlighted how the programme has empowered the GBIF network, narrowed knowledge gaps, and improved data skills and quality across our regional communities of practice."
The €4 million in funding from DG INTPA will extend BID's next phase of activities in the three original target regions and brings the total EU investment in the programme between 2015 and 2029 to €9.5 million.
This programme is funded by the European Union.