Building transparent and reliable conservation systems
Accountable use of nature
Producing future conservationist
Building strong partnership
Holistic approach based conservation
Developing strong community involvement
Why is it important to conserve threatened species?
They are sign of ecosystem imbalance - Healthy ecosystems depend on plant and animal species as their foundations.
They are at risk of extinction: Extinction due to human and natural causes is irreversible
They have socioeconomic importance: for instance ecotourism, drugs, disease control industry
They have the right to survive: worth and inherent right to exist.
Objectives
- To conserve threatened species and ecosystems.
- To ensure sustainable socioeconomic benefit from threatened species.
- To enhance human and wildlife coexistence by minimizing conflict.
- To develop a national database of threatened species.
- To increase public awareness, and build future conservationists.
What is threatened species?
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) categorized species into nine: not evaluated, data deficient, least concerned, near threatened, vulnerable, endangered, critically endangered, extinct in wild, and extinct (Figure below). A threatened species is any species, which is vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered. The threatened species are at risk of extinction due to rapid population decrease and critical habitat loss. According to IUCN (2019), in Ethiopia about 131 threatened species have been living.