Final evaluation of "Support to the implementation of the Amazon ecosystem-based conservation vision to the benefit of local communities and the preservation of ecosystem services in the Amazon region"

The Amazon biome is the largest tropical ecosystem in the world, covering 6% of the surface of the planet. It is home to 34 million people, 10% of the world’s biodiversity, and plays a vital role in regulating the global climate. To support the community of park directors of the Amazon’s protected areas (REDPARQUES) and to ensure their effective and collaborative protection, between 2014 and mid 2019, FAO implemented the ‘Integration of the Areas Protected from the Amazon Biome’ (IAPA) project.

The IAPA project contributed significantly to protect local and indigenous communities and their livelihoods, preserving the biodiversity of the Amazon biome, supporting management of the ecosystem, and strengthening regional integration of protected areas. Future projects should continue its efforts to influence the conservation policies at the government level, with emphasis on the integration of indigenous populations and women in project development, and carry out an integrated approach between protected area management, sustainable agriculture and agrobiodiversity.