1.1 Introduction
This book examines the laws, policies, and institutions on biodiversity, nature conservation, and the protection of cultural heritage in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.Footnote 1 It analyzes the interrelationships between biodiversity, nature conservation, and the preservation of cultural heritage, as well as lessons learned from emerging nexus and integrated approaches to the implementation of multilateral environmental treaties in these fields at regional and domestic levels.
Halting the rapid loss of biodiversity is one of the triple planetary emergencies facing our present generation, the other two being climate change and pollution.Footnote 2 Biodiversity “refers to the different forms of plants, animals, and biological forms of life that make up the ecosystem.”Footnote 3 The 1992 United Nations Earth Summit defined biological diversity as “the variability among living organisms from all sources.”Footnote 4 All of the elements of the ecosystem are interlinked and depend on each other to survive. For example, without bees, food crops may not grow, which may lead to food scarcity, hunger, and a total collapse of the global food industry.Footnote 5 Similarly, without plants, humans and other life-forms may lack access to the essential sources of nutrition, medicines, and clean air needed to sustain life on earth.Footnote 6 In addition to the intrinsic and ecosystem value of these biological resources in providing pivotal support for the subsistence and survival of current and future generations, such resources also have enormous religious, cultural, recreational, and economic value, especially for diversifying revenue sources through a prosperous ecotourism industry.Footnote 7 The need to preserve and protect the various biological and cultural resources that sustain the ecosystem has therefore remained one of the most fundamental priorities of international environmental law.Footnote 8 Goal 15 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) expressly calls on countries to ensure “the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of terrestrial and inland freshwater ecosystems and their services, in particular forests, wetland, mountains and dryland in line with obligations under international agreements” by 2020.Footnote 9 The 2030 Agenda envisages, among other things, “a world in which humanity lives in harmony with nature and wildlife, and other living species are protected.”Footnote 10
Yet environmental stresses from the destruction of wildlife habitats, overexploitation of plant and animal species, poaching, use of toxic pesticides, illicit trade in plants and animal resources, and climate change impacts, coupled with gaps in environmental awareness and education, have for many years contributed to rapid biodiversity loss across the world, including in the MENA region.Footnote 11 Recent studies indicate that society’s activities have pushed biodiversity loss beyond the planetary boundaries needed to sustain life on earth.Footnote 12 One alarming study found that earth’s wild mammals comprise less than 10 percent of the total biomass of humans and less than 4 percent of that of domesticated animals.Footnote 13 These studies highlight how biodiversity loss and land degradation are taking place at an unprecedented rate, and the urgent need for legal responses to enhance biodiversity and nature conservation. The devastating impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have also accentuated calls for a more balanced relationship with nature and all elements of the ecosystem in order to reduce the rising scale of pandemics and zoonotic diseases – that is, infectious diseases that are transferred from animals to humans – in areas where they did not exist before.Footnote 14 Furthermore, the rapid loss of biodiversity has also been highlighted as a threat to the realization of several human rights, including the right to life, right to food, and right to health.Footnote 15
Halting the threat of biodiversity loss is a particularly urgent imperative for the MENA region, arguably more so than any other region in the world. The MENA region is often categorized as a biodiversity hotspot, meaning that it contains “at least 1,500 species of vascular plants found nowhere else on Earth, and has lost at least 70 percent of its primary native vegetation.”Footnote 16 The region is home to more than 5,000 recorded species of plants, more than 10,000 species of animals, and 5 of the world’s 34 internationally recognized biodiversity hotspots.Footnote 17 Key habitats such as the marshes and wetlands of the Jordan Valley provide critical stopover points for around 500 million migratory birds each year. Furthermore, countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Mashreq host diverse landscapes such as mountains, inland and coastal plains, sand deserts, and wetlands that are home to over 5,500 endemic plant species.Footnote 18 Similarly, the MENA region is home to rare animal species, such as the Queen of Sheba’s gazelle, Arabian oryx, Arabian tahr, Arabian wolf, Asiatic jackal, Arabian camel (dromedary), Arabian leopard, striped hyena, and birds such as the Arabian bustard and honey buzzard.Footnote 19
However, due to the impacts of climate change and rapid urbanization, the rise in construction activities, poaching, unsustainable agricultural practices, conflicts, and political instability, and a lack of comprehensive conservation laws and practices, among other factors, the MENA region has lost more than 95 percent of its natural habitats, resulting in accelerated loss of nature and biodiversity across the region.Footnote 20 In Morocco, for example, studies show that more than 1,700 plant species are endangered or threatened with extinction, while more than 600 animal species face the risk of extinction.Footnote 21 Similarly, critical habitats such as mangroves, seagrass beds, and coral reefs in the Arabian Gulf are endangered, while several endemic species in the region are assessed as threatened with extinction in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.Footnote 22 Estimates indicate that 17 percent of the endemic mammals in the region could become extinct before 2050 due to climate change and other factors.Footnote 23 Similarly, the increasing destruction of cultural sites and theft of cultural artifacts by militant and terrorist groups raise key concerns across the region.Footnote 24 Given the high potential for scarcities and exacerbated resource-driven conflict in biodiversity hotspots, MENA countries face an urgent task to halt biodiversity loss.Footnote 25
Despite the grim reality of the rapid loss of biological and cultural resources across the MENA region, the clear and comprehensive legal frameworks needed to halt and address the loss have not been forthcoming in many parts of the region. The absence of quality, accessible, and reliable statistics and indicators on the status, trends, and programs carried out to advance the conservation of biological and cultural heritage remains a key hindrance to monitoring progress.Footnote 26 For example, only a few MENA countries actively update the status of biodiversity programs through the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) clearing-house mechanisms. Similarly, biodiversity education is still at an alarming stage of infancy across the region. Currently, only very few universities in the MENA region have dedicated law courses that advance knowledge and capacity on biodiversity law and policy. According to the findings of recent regional conferences on environmental law, one key reason for this slow pace of environmental legal education is the absence of an authoritative text that unpacks the nature and guiding principles of biodiversity and nature conservation law and policy in the region.Footnote 27 While there are many journal articles and book chapters that survey and analyze various aspects of biodiversity law and policy in the MENA region, a clear, comprehensive, and book-length exposition of the normative underpinnings, value, and best practices on biodiversity and nature law and governance in the region has yet to emerge. This book fills this gap by providing an analytical examination of best practices in the design, application, implementation, and enforcement of biodiversity and nature conservation law and policy in the MENA region.
The book introduces readers to the latest legislative developments on biodiversity, nature conservation, and the protection of cultural heritage in the MENA region, including the applicable legislation and institutions, as well as lessons learned from emerging innovative and bottom-up approaches to their implementation across the world. It also explores larger questions on legal and institutional frameworks that can help address broader issues of fragmentation, gender-based exclusions and inequality, inadequate stakeholder engagement, lack of transparency, limited access to environmental information, and lack of comprehensive domestic legislation, and how they stifle the nexus and integrated implementation of biodiversity and nature conservation treaties and the equitable sharing of the benefits derived from biodiversity and nature in the region.
This chapter provides a conceptual overview of the nature and scope of biodiversity and nature conservation law and policy in the MENA region. Section 1.2 provides an overview of the different sources of law that underpin biodiversity and nature conservation law and policy in the region. It discusses the character, status, and force of the different sources, including the interrelationships between them. Section 1.3 outlines the overall aim and structure of the book.
1.2 Sources of Biodiversity and Nature Conservation Law and Policy in the MENA Region
Conservation is “the protection and preservation of plants, animals, and other biological and cultural resources for the benefit of current and future generations.”Footnote 28 Therefore, biodiversity and nature conservation law is that branch of environmental law that provides the general legal framework for the protection of plants, animals, and other biological and cultural resources that make up the ecosystem from overexploitation and abuse.Footnote 29 While biological diversity focuses mainly on natural heritage and species such as plants, animals, and humans in the ecosystem, cultural diversity refers to the wide range of “generational values, shared beliefs, customs, practices, objects, and artistic expressions” that are relevant to the overall smooth functioning of our world.Footnote 30 Due to their vital roles, and their interdependencies, addressing the common and multiscale threats to the conservation of biological diversity, cultural diversity, and conservation of all aspects of the ecosystem, through a nexus and integrated approach, has become an important aspect of international law for the last several decades.Footnote 31 Since the Stockholm Conference in 1972, we have seen the adoption of a wide range of multilateral treaties relating to biodiversity, nature conservation, and the preservation of cultural heritage.Footnote 32 Biodiversity and nature conservation law is therefore an amalgam of a wide range of interrelated legal regimes relating to environmental protection, trade, investment, land use, human rights, biosafety, and energy, among others.Footnote 33
Since the adoption of the CBD in 1992, the discipline of biodiversity and nature conservation law and policy has developed incrementally worldwide.Footnote 34 Initially, it emerged as a tool to curb the overexploitation and degradation of biodiversity. Laws focused on conserving specific threatened species, though a general approach was still rare. The continued loss of key species created urgency for targeted protection. In the second phase, there was acknowledgment that conserving biodiversity and species requires preserving natural habitats and cultural heritage.Footnote 35 Laws shifted to integrate species and habitat conservation efforts. Currently in the third phase, the nexus and integrated management of biological and cultural resources to advance sustainable development has become a major concept in law, embedded in many regional and global instruments.Footnote 36 The need for such harmonized efforts has assumed greater significance and urgency with the adoption of the UN SDGs. SDGs 12, 14, and 15 emphasize the need to protect various aspects of biological diversity. SDG 11.4 specifically highlights the need to protect the world’s cultural and natural heritage; SDG 17 also underscores the need for enhanced partnerships – globally, regionally, nationally, and locally – as a required step for attaining all of the SDGs, including those on biodiversity and nature conservation. SDG 17.14 specifically encourages all stakeholders to enhance cooperation and policy coherence for sustainable development.Footnote 37 The important roles of nature and nature-based solutions as tools for economic diversification (bioeconomy), climate action, and integrated health management have also become important. For example, recent studies, including reports of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Service (IPBES),Footnote 38 have underlined the urgent need for a nexus approach to ecosystems governance as a framework for the coherent, holistic, and integrated implementation of biodiversity and nature conservation treaties to address fragmentations and to advance all of the associated SDGs.Footnote 39
Biodiversity law has therefore progressed from urgent species-specific protections to a more holistic view linking conservation to habitats, cultural heritage, bioeconomy, and broader sustainable development priorities.Footnote 40 Generally, there are three key sources of biodiversity and nature conservation law and policy in the MENA region: international law, domestic legislation, and judicial decisions and scholarly publications.
1.2.1 International Law on Biodiversity and Nature Conservation
International law governs relations between sovereign nations. International biodiversity and nature conservation law is therefore a field of international law that regulates the behavior of states and international organizations with respect to the protection and conservation of plants, animals, and other biological and cultural resources. As recognized in Article 38 of the Statute of the International Court of Justice, the major sources of international law, and by extension international biodiversity and nature conservation law, are international conventions and treaties, international customs, general principles of law, and the judicial decisions and teachings of highly qualified publicists.Footnote 41
As early as the 1900s, multilateral agreements that recognized how unregulated trade in plant and animal species may impact the environment and its resources began to emerge: for example, the Convention for the Preservation of Animals, Birds, and Fish in Africa, signed in London on May 19, 1900 (1900 London Convention), the first formal agreement on trade-related environmental issues.Footnote 42 Although the 1900 London Convention never entered into force, due to lack of ratification, it started an important conversation on how the unregulated trade in African elephants and game species may lead to their extinction.Footnote 43 As discussed in Chapter 2, this impetus led to the adoption of a number of legally binding instruments on biodiversity and nature conservation.Footnote 44 The most important of these instruments is the CBD which in Article 1 sets out the three objectives as: the conservation of biological diversity, sustainable use, and access and benefit-sharing.Footnote 45 Each of these objectives are discussed across the book.Footnote 46
As indicated in Table 1.1, several MENA countries have adopted and ratified the CBD and other key multilateral treaties on biodiversity and nature conservation. The rise in international awareness and instruments on this subject has also resulted in the development of regional treaties aimed at enhancing the conservation of the region’s rich natural and cultural heritage.
Table 1.1 International conservation agreements ratified and acceded to by MENA states
| Treaty | MENA states (ratification/accession) |
|---|---|
| International | |
| Convention on Biological Diversity | Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen |
| Convention on Wetlands | Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen |
| Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals | Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen |
| Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora | Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen |
| The UNESCO Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage | Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen |
| Regional and subregional | |
| Kuwait Regional Convention on Protection of Marine Environment and Protocols | Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia |
| Regional Convention for the Conservation of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden Environment | Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen |
| African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources of 1968 (and revised in 2017) | Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Sudan, Tunisia. Signatories only: Libya, Mauritania, Somalia |
| Convention on the Conservation of Wildlife and their Natural Habitats in GCC Countries | Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Oman |
1.2.2 Regional Instruments
As indicated in Table 1.1, several treaties have been adopted at the regional and subregional levels which aim to protect and preserve flora, fauna, and cultural heritage from all sources of pollution and degradation.
The regional instruments are discussed extensively in Chapter 2 and they include the Kuwait Regional Convention on Protection of Marine Environment and Protocols (Kuwait Convention) and its protocols; the Regional Convention for the Conservation of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden Environment (Jeddah Convention); the Convention on the Conservation of Wildlife and their Natural Habitats in GCC Countries (GCC Wildlife Convention); and the African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources of 1968 (and revised in 2017) (African Convention).
In addition to these binding international and regional biodiversity and nature conservation law instruments, a number of nonbinding declarations and strategy plans have emerged at the regional level that provide foundations for the development and application of biodiversity and nature conservation law and policy in the MENA region. These include:
1. The 1991 Arab Declaration on Environment and Development and Future Prospects: which contains a commitment by all Arab countries in the MENA region to work together to preserve the biological diversity of the region and guarantee the conservation of land, marine, and freshwater resources.Footnote 47 It also encourages states to develop policies, legislation, and education initiatives aimed at the preservation and conservation of natural heritage from harmful environmental effects and calls on countries to introduce environmental subjects into syllabi and curricula at all levels of education.Footnote 48
2. The 2001 Arab Declaration to the World Summit on Sustainable Development: which enshrines the commitment of Arab countries in the MENA region to work together to preserve the ecosystems and biodiversity of the region. It also recognizes the need for states to maintain the unique cultural and religious heritage of the region and to utilize it to achieve sustainable development.Footnote 49
3. The Strategic Plans of the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALESCO). ALECSO is a specialized institution of the League of Arab States,Footnote 50 established to promote, preserve, protect, and conserve tangible and intangible Arab cultural heritage, and to foster coordination among Arab states in the fields of education, science, and cultural heritage.Footnote 51 ALESCO provides training to heritage conservation specialists across the region and promotes the restitution of stolen or missing cultural heritage items.Footnote 52
Although these soft law instruments are aspirational and not legally binding, they have prompted the development of a wide range of domestic laws and policies designed to enhance the conservation of nature and cultural heritage in MENA countries.
1.2.3 Domestic Legislation
The aim of conservation laws across the MENA region is to ensure the conservation of flora, fauna, and natural habitats, and to halt the illicit trade and trafficking in wildlife and other biological and cultural specimens. Several of the key international and regional conventions on conservation of nature and cultural heritage adopted by MENA countries have been reflected in domestic legislation on environment and conservation.
Although the nature and scope of domestic legislation relating to biodiversity and nature conservation law varies from one MENA country to another, biodiversity and nature conservation law and policies at domestic levels can be divided into three main categories.
1.2.3.1 The Constitution
The primary source of law across the MENA region is the constitution as it sets the basic principles and norms that define other legislation enacted by the legislature or the Shura Council. The constitution is the supreme law, and it has binding force on all authorities and persons in a country.Footnote 53 The constitutions of several MENA countries expressly codify provisions on environmental protection and sustainable development.Footnote 54 For example, Article 33 of the Permanent Constitution for the State of Qatar declares: “The State shall conserve the environment and its natural balance for the comprehensive and sustainable use of its resources for all generations.”Footnote 55 Similarly, Article 9(h) of Bahrain’s Constitution of 2002 provides that “the State shall take the necessary measures for the protection of the environment and the conversation of wildlife.”Footnote 56 These constitutional provisions directly incorporate the protection of all aspects of the environment and conservation, from degradation to pollution, and provide strong foundational basis for subsequent policy and legislative action to address biodiversity and nature conservation.
Additionally, given that Islam is the dominant religion in the MENA region, Shari’ah law is constitutionally recognized as the principal source of law in essentially all the countries of the region.Footnote 57 For example, Article 1 of Qatar’s 2005 Constitution clearly states that Qatar is “an independent sovereign Arab State. Its religion is Islam, and the Sharia law shall be the principal source of its legislation.”Footnote 58 The Constitution of Kuwait states: “The religion of the State is Islam, and the Islamic Shari’a shall be a main source of legislation.”Footnote 59 Article 7 of the Constitution of the United Arab Emirates states that “Islam is the official religion of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Islamic Shari’a is a main source of legislation in the UAE.”Footnote 60
Consequently, the four sources of Shari’ah law – the noble Quran; the Sunnah or teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him); Ijma or teachings of consensus of various scholars of Islam; and Qiyas or analogical reasoning both deductive and inductive – all provide pivotal foundations for the development and practice of environmental law and policy, as well as biodiversity and nature conservation across the region.Footnote 61 Islamic environmental philosophy emphasizes the obligations of human beings to safeguard and conserve nature and its resources. The concept of khilafah and amānah (custodianship and trust) derived from the QuranFootnote 62 and Sunnah emphasize the role of humans as stewards or trustees of the earth, making it a fundamental duty to protect and preserve nature.Footnote 63 Islamic law also includes many universal guiding principles pertaining to protecting the environment, including the protection of animals and plants, the conservation and sustainable management of land, water, and air, and the protection of the balance of nature and biodiversity.Footnote 64
1.2.3.2 Primary Legislation
Key environmental legislation across the region contain general provisions on biodiversity and nature conservation.Footnote 65 For example, in Qatar, Article 9 of Law No. 30 on Environmental Protection tasks the competent national authorities to issue regulations and decisions relating to the conservation of wildlife and endangered species, and to prohibit the catching of rare wildlife species. Articles 16–19 of Law No. 4 of 1983 on the Exploitation and Conservation of Living Aquatic Resources in Qatar elaborate on the conservation of aquatic resources and the sustainability standards for fishing and harvesting of living aquatic resources.Footnote 66 Law No. 4 of 2002 regulating hunting of wildlife animals, birds, and reptiles prohibits and criminalizes the indiscriminate hunting of wild animals, birds, reptiles, and marine turtles. Article 4 of Qatar’s Law No. 19 of 2004 Conservation of Wildlife and their Natural Habitats specifically outlaws any “acts, transactions, activities or procedures that would dilapidate, destroy, distort or deteriorate the wildlife environment, or affect the richness of the natural reserves.” Prohibited acts include hunting or killing, injuring, or polluting land or sea animals, as well as the dilapidation, transfer, or destruction of natural habitats for flora and fauna. It also prohibits the “construction of buildings or erection establishments, roads, driving vehicles, or the exercise of any agricultural, industrial, pastoral or other activity at the natural reserve.” Additionally, to address the illicit trade in wildlife fauna and flora species, Article 3 of Qatar’s Law No. 5 of 2006 on the Regulation of Trade in Endangered Wildlife Fauna and Flora and their Products expressly prohibits the trade, transit, and shipment of endangered species listed in the appendices to the law.Footnote 67 Similar legislation that prohibits trade in wildlife species and indiscriminate hunting can be found in other MENA countries, some of which are extensively discussed in Part II.Footnote 68
1.2.3.3 Secondary Legislation
The third main source of domestic biodiversity and nature conservation law and policies flows from the second, comprising a range of detailed regulations, by-laws, national visions and plans, ministerial decisions, and guidelines that are used to flesh out much of the detail of the primary legislation. Ministries or departments overseeing environmental regulation often issue regulations, rules, notices, permits, and guidelines under their enabling statutes. These provide specifics on implementing national strategies, visions, and policies that businesses must comply with. As state legal instruments authorized by legislation, they significantly shape policy and practice. Noncompliance can mean losing business opportunities or penalties, depending on enforcement powers granted.Footnote 69
In addition to binding legal provisions, several MENA countries have also put in place declarations, action plans, directives, and national visions that address various aspects of the sustainable management and conservation of biological and cultural resources.Footnote 70 Several MENA countries have also released national biodiversity and conservation master plans that set out targets and approaches for accelerating the conservation of biodiversity and natural heritage as part of their implementation of international treaty provisions, such as the CBD, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, and the World Heritage Convention.Footnote 71 For example, Qatar’s National Vision 2030 rests on four key pillars, the fourth of which is to “manage the environment such that there is harmony between economic growth, social development and environmental protection.”Footnote 72 Biodiversity and nature conservation is considered vital, especially in the face of its fast-paced development and industrialization and in light of challenges such as increasing groundwater salinity, degrading soil quality, air pollution, climate change, rising sea levels, and biodiversity and species under threat.Footnote 73
1.2.3.4 Judicial Decisions and Scholarly Publications
In the MENA region, the development of biodiversity and conservation laws is influenced not just by primary sources such as constitutions, statutes, and treaties but also by secondary sources such as the judicial decisions of courts and tribunals, as well as the scholarly works of highly qualified jurists.Footnote 74 However, contrary to the stare decisis rule applied in the common law system, case law does not constitute a binding source of law in civil law countries,Footnote 75 and the decisions of courts, such as the Court of Cassation and Court of Appeal, can be consulted persuasively to guide the court but do not normally bind either themselves or lower courts.Footnote 76
The geometric rise of biodiversity litigation in many parts of the world emphasize the potential legal liability and risks that governments and business enterprises may face for failing to integrate biodiversity and nature conservation in development planning processes.Footnote 77 As biodiversity and nature conservation laws develop across the region, biodiversity litigation is expected to rise in scale and volume. While international decisions are not binding on MENA courts, they provide persuasive and instructive guidance for resolving such disputes. Furthermore, courts may also consult the commentaries and opinions of highly qualified jurists and scholars, such as law professors, attorneys, and judges, especially in shaping the development of new, emerging, and developing areas of law, such as biodiversity and nature conservation law. These include the reports of international bodies, such as the International Law Commission, the Academic Advisory Group constituted by the International Bar Association’s Section on Energy, Environment, Natural Resources and Infrastructure Law, the academy of environmental law of the IUCN, the International Law Association, and the Association of Environmental Law Lecturers in Middle East and North African Universities, among others, which offer authoritative analyses of a wide variety of issues pertaining to biodiversity and nature conservation.Footnote 78
Similarly, a number of nonbinding biodiversity-related documents have been released by eminent scholars and clerics. For example, though not legally binding, the Islamic Declaration on Climate Change of 2015 calls on Muslims worldwide to tackle “the root causes of climate change, environmental degradation and the loss of biodiversity.” It called upon Muslims to work to preserve the environment using Islamic principles such as khalifa (caretaker), which sees human beings as vicegerents of God on earth, responsible for all beings and the environment, and entrusted with nature to benefit society while safeguarding it from overconsumption, highlighting the importance of respecting the environment, and considering the impact of our economic activities on the environment.Footnote 79 These nonbinding declarations provide faith-based frameworks and guidance on how governments, national authorities, investors, and other stakeholders across the MENA region can contribute to global biodiversity and nature conservation efforts.
These sources provide a legal foundation for mainstreaming biodiversity and nature conservation into all aspects of development and investment planning across the MENA region. While the codification of specific biodiversity legislation remains in progress in many countries of the region, a wide range of environmental legislation and regulations, including constitutional principles on environmental protection and sustainable development, outlaw practices, including hunting, poaching, and illicit trade, that may deplete or degrade natural and cultural heritage and resources. Furthermore, as discussed in Chapter 4, all MENA countries have designated or established focal ministries, departments, or committees that oversee biodiversity and nature conservation programs, including forest management. The chapters in this book review and evaluate how the plethora of policies, instruments, and scientific studies are shaping responses to biodiversity loss across the region.
1.3 Aim, Scope, and Structure of the Book
As discussed, the nexus approach to biodiversity and nature conservation emphasizes the need for multistakeholder and multisectoral partnerships in the design and implementation of biodiversity and nature conservation treaties. It seeks to promote hybrid, interconnected, and integrated biodiversity programs among a wide range of institution and sectors, including water, energy, food, health, climate change, and human rights.Footnote 80 While the need for a nexus strategy for mainstreaming biodiversity and nature conservation into national development is becoming increasingly recognized in the literature, the multidimensional and intersectional nature of implementing a nexus approach to biodiversity and nature conservation in practice in the MENA region has yet to receive a detailed, book-length exposition. This book fills a gap in this regard.
The chapters unpack a wide range of legal and regulatory innovations that can help unlock a nexus and integrated approach to the design, application, and implementation of biodiversity, conservation, and nature-based solutions across the region to achieve a coherent and comprehensive response to global sustainability challenges. With case studies from across the region, this book provides in-depth analysis and exposition of the latest legislative developments on biodiversity, nature conservation, and the protection of cultural heritage in the MENA region, including the applicable legislation and institutions, as well as lessons learned from emerging innovative and bottom-up approaches to their implementation across the world and the challenges that remain.
While this book offers a scan of the sources and underpinning principles of biodiversity law and policy law and policy in the region, it is clearly acknowledged that the substantive chapters cannot unpack and analyze every applicable piece of legislation and instrument in all MENA countries. The book aims to enhance understanding of the interconnections between biodiversity, nature conservation, and attaining water, energy, and food security and resilience to disasters such as climate change and pandemics. It examines the laws, policies, and institutions on biodiversity, conservation, and cultural heritage protection in MENA. The goal is to foster an understanding of the unique legal, policy, and governance challenges faced in the region in seeking to achieve the SDGs and other international instruments and documents relating to biodiversity and conservation.
1.3.1 Structure
Part I introduces the interrelationships between biodiversity, nature conservation, and the attainment of water, energy, and food security, as well as resilience to global disasters such as climate change and global pandemics. It explains key concepts and underlying themes such as “biodiversity” and “nature conservation” and the wide range of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) in place at the international level to advance biodiversity and nature conservation.
Part II consists of a series of case studies that examine emerging approaches and challenges to the nexus and integrated implementation of biodiversity and nature conservation treaties in different sectors and countries in the MENA region. The case studies identify the various legal, policy, and governance challenges that hinder the nexus and integrated implementation of biodiversity and nature conservation treaties at national and municipal levels across the region. Concerns of fragmentation, gender inequality, inadequate stakeholder engagement, financing gaps, inadequate support for biodiversity entrepreneurship, limited access to environmental information, and lack of comprehensive legislation on biodiversity and access to benefit-sharing are unpacked.
The case studies demonstrate how inappropriately designed and implemented laws and policies on biodiversity and nature conservation could result in land rights violations in biodiversity and nature-based programs, social exclusions, and incoherent implementation. Part II also identifies positive and high-leverage laws, policies, and strategies that advance nexus thinking, the contexts in which they are being implemented, barriers to their effective implementation, and innovative legal approaches to advance such strategies.
Part III offers reflections on the case studies and addresses how lessons from diverse jurisdictions may inform thoughts on how to effectively design, apply, and implement sustainable and rights-based frameworks to enhance integrated decision-making and information sharing on biodiversity and nature conservation. The need to integrate biodiversity and nature conservation in environmental impact assessments and human rights due diligence processes for development activities and construction projects are specifically highlighted.Footnote 81 The role of higher education institutions in promoting environmental law education and capacity development on biodiversity through enquiry-based learning methods is also discussed.Footnote 82
All eighteen chapters provide a worldwide audience of scholars, business leaders, policymakers, and administrators with an authoritative and invaluable guidebook and toolkit to access, understand, and appreciate the legal, fiscal, and institutional frameworks applicable to the effective design, application, and implementation of biodiversity and nature conservation programs and policies in the MENA region. It also offers as an invaluable guide to ongoing efforts by the United Nations to define and conceptualize the biodiversity–climate–water–food–energy–health nexus.Footnote 83
1.4 Conclusion
There is a growing recognition and awareness across the MENA region regarding the need to protect and conserve the region’s abundant biological and cultural resources, so that present and future generations can enjoy access to these resources. In addition to their environmental and ecosystems value, MENA countries have significant potential to unlock social and economic activities such as tourism and biodiversity entrepreneurship, as well as increased trade, tax, fees, and payment for ecosystem services (PES) and nature-based innovation, all of which can accelerate economic diversification.Footnote 84
Addressing the widescale adverse impacts of the loss of biodiversity on lives and livelihoods in the MENA region is therefore an urgent sustainable development priority. To achieve this objective, there is a need for clear and coherent laws and policies that mainstream biodiversity and nature conservation into all aspects of national planning. Practical challenges to the nexus and integrated implementation of biodiversity and nature conservation must be carefully unpacked and addressed. A comprehensive analysis and study of the structural and nonstructural challenges that arise in the design, application, and implementation of biodiversity and nature conservation law and policy across the region can help us to plot a comprehensive path for achieving policy coherence and reform.
The systemic and multijurisdictional survey of the unique and underlying features of biodiversity and nature conservation regulation in diverse jurisdictions offered by this book can simplify the task of advancing nature-based solutions to complex sustainability challenges in the region, as well as the integration of ecosystems approaches into key sectors and industries in MENA countries, including financing, entrepreneurship, and healthcare.
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