Pretoria, South Africa — December 2025 South Africa is home to some of the world's richest biodiversity—from the Succulent Karoo to the bushveld of Limpopo. Yet many of the communities living closest to this natural wealth see little economic benefit from it. A new US$46 million initiative aims to change that.

The Global Environment Facility (GEF) has approved "Securing Nature's Contribution to People: Advancing Indigenous and Local Community Livelihoods, Cultural Practices, and Sustainable Land Management", a five-year programme designed to place local people—particularly women and youth—at the centre of South Africa's biodiversity economy.

At a time when rural unemployment remains stubbornly high and pressure on land and natural resources continues to grow, the project offers a practical solution: turn conservation into income, reward communities for protecting what they know best, and build enterprises that thrive because nature thrives.

Implemented by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), with UNDP as GEF Agency and the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) as a key partner, the initiative will operate across priority landscapes in Limpopo, North West, Eastern Cape, and Northern Cape—regions facing biodiversity loss, land degradation, and limited economic opportunity.

With GEF financing of US$5.4 million and more than US$41 million in co-financing, the project will directly benefit over 4,100 people and support improved management across nearly 100,000 hectares of land.

Why this matters now 

"South Africa's natural wealth—our wildlife, indigenous plants, and landscapes—isn't just something to protect behind fences," said Maxwell Gomera, UNDP South Africa Resident Representative. "It's an economic engine waiting to be unlocked, especially in rural areas where unemployment and inequality hit hardest. But conservation only works when the people living on the land benefit directly. This project backs community-owned enterprise, supports traditional knowledge systems, and creates real livelihoods from biodiversity. That's the future: nature and people, thriving together. And if we get this right in South Africa, we show the continent how it's done."

In rural Limpopo, traditional healers struggle to find the medicinal plants their patients depend on as overharvesting and habitat loss take their toll. In the Northern Cape, illegal succulent poaching strips the Karoo of its unique flora while young people see few viable livelihoods. Across communal rangelands, wildlife has economic potential—but communities lack access to markets, finance, and support.

This project tackles these challenges together, not through charity, but through enterprise.

Three pathways to opportunity

The initiative is built around three complementary approaches:

1. Transforming the wildlife economy

Supporting community participation in the game meat value chain, bringing 50,000 hectares of communal land under sustainable wildlife management, and expanding inclusive enterprise development. The focus is not luxury tourism alone, but local processing, markets, and livelihoods rooted in sustainable use.

2. Safeguarding cultural heritage and traditional healthcare

Restoring medicinal plant resources, recognising 7,000 hectares of culturally significant areas, and supporting traditional healers (izinyanga and sangomas) with cultivation skills, sustainable harvesting practices, and alternative income opportunities—ensuring the muthi economy can endure without degrading ecosystems.

3. Conserving dryland ecosystems

Creating legal, transparent trade pathways for ornamental plants from the Succulent Karoo Biodiversity Hotspot, reducing illegal harvesting, and generating alternative livelihoods for rural youth. Because global demand exists, this project ensures value stays local and trade remains sustainable.

Building on South Africa's priorities

The programme builds on South Africa's White Paper on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity, the National Biodiversity Economy Strategy, and the country's commitments under the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

It responds directly to national priorities: land reform, rural employment, climate resilience, and community-led economic models that deliver results. These interventions demonstrate how conservation, cultural knowledge, and economic inclusion can reinforce one another. By working alongside Indigenous Peoples and local communities, the project advances a people-centred, nature-positive development model that is firmly aligned with South Africa’s national priorities and long-term sustainability objectives.

Media Contact:

Ntokozo Mahlangu

Head of Communications, UNDP South Africa

Email: ntokozo.mahlangu@undp.org  | Tel: +2760 533 6760

Website: https://www.undp.org/south-africa

About UNDP

UNDP is the leading United Nations organization working to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Through partnerships in more than 170 countries, UNDP helps nations build integrated, lasting solutions for people and the planet.

About the Global Environment Facility (GEF)

The Global Environment Facility is the world’s largest multilateral fund for the environment. Its family of funds work together to address the planet’s most pressing challenges in an integrated way. Its financing helps developing countries address complex challenges and work towards meeting international environmental goals. Over the past three decades, the GEF has provided more than US$27 billion in financing, primarily as grants, and mobilised another US$155 billion for country-driven priority priorities.