Banjul — A five-day training on biodiversity conservation and management for forestry officers, last Thursday, November 19th commenced at the Darwin Field Station, located right in the heart of the Abuko Nature Reserve.

The training is organised by the Department of Forestry through the Ministry of Forestry and Environment and sponsored by UNDP. It aims among others to build the capacities and management skills of the forestry officers on biodiversity and management, as part of efforts meant to achieve sustainable biodiversity conservation in the country.

The training is expected to expose participants to different methods and techniques used in conservation and proper management of biodiversity and other related forest products, as well as bi-products. Both participants and course lecturers will make series of field trips to almost all the major forest and nature reserve centres throughout the Western Region, the Greater Banjul Area and beyond. Papers will be presented on biodiversity conservation and management by different personalities in the world of wild life and other related nature conservation.

Ebrima Darboe, senior secretary at the Ministry of Forestry and Environment, who deputised for Jatto Sillah, minister of Forestry and Environment, emphasised the importance of biodiversity towards achieving sustainable development of countries. According to him, biodiversity contributes a lot to key sectors of economy such as agriculture, health, education among others. He described the training as timely considering its impact on efforts geared towards biodiversity conservation and management in the country. The Forestry and Environment officer seized the opportunity to thank both the organisers and sponsors of the training.

Famara Drammeh, biodiversity consultant and programme manager at the National Environment Agency (NEA), said the government of The Gambia have made concerted efforts towards the protection and management of biodiversity in the country This he said is evidenced in the countryÂ's signatory to various international conventions and protocols such as the convention on biological diversity, UN convention to combat desertification, UN Framwork Convention on Climate Change among others.

The Biodiversity consultant at the NEA spoke at length on the importance of biodiversity. He noted that biodiversity is crucial in reduction of poverty due to the basic goods and ecosystem services it provides. Abdoulie Sanneh, Forestry officer at the Western Region, who chaired the occasion; and Malang Jambang, executive officer of the Makasutu Forest, all spoke dearly about the importance of biodiversity and the need to conserve and manage it with care.