Regional: Protecting and Investing in Natural Capital in Asia and the Pacific

Agriculture, natural resources and rural development / Forestry - Land-based natural resources management

Energy / Energy sector development and institutional reform

Water and other urban infrastructure and services / Urban water supply

Natural capital assets of DMCs improved.

Commitment of DMCs to invest in natural capital increased.

Business-case for natural capital investments established

Investments in natural capital prepared

Capacity to address illegal wildlife crime enhanced

Knowledge and capacity for natural capital investment strengthened.

Under Output 1, ongoing activities include biophysical and economic assessments to inform the preparation of investment projects and strengthen DMC knowledge and capacity to design and implement these investments. The TA currently supports (i) promoting nature-based solutions in project design (e.g., reforestation, watershed management, room for the river) in selected river basins in Indonesia and the Philippines; (ii) supporting the integration of biodiversity, ecosystems and forest habitats in landscape planning for infrastructure in Bhutan and Nepal; (iii) assessing basin-scale ecosystem conditions and water quality in Ravi River by developing land-use map for water quality assessment to inform and contribute to the River Ravi Revitalization Master Plan in Pakistan; (iv) integration of biodiversity conservation into urban design in New Clark City, Philippines; (v) development of watershed management plan in the catchment area of the Siri Toi Reservoir, Pakistan; (vi) community-based land-use and conservation planning in Xe Champhone Wetlands, Lao People's Democratic Republic; (vii) terrestrial ecology assessment (Alaoa Multipurpose Dam), Samoa; and (viii) assessing ecological risks of potential renewable energy investment projects using Bird e-Sensitivity Mapping for India, Nepal, Thailand and Viet Nam. The Bird e-Sensitivity mapper will be an open source portal for use by developers and regulators to ensure risks of potential renewable energy investments for birds are identified, sensitive locations are avoided and ecologically sensitive design is considered at the outset. Through knowledge and capacity building activities (linked to output iv) the mapper will facilitate quicker approval of projects supporting DMCs in their push to expand increases in renewable energy.

Output 2 is closely linked to biophysical and economic assessments of output 1._Ongoing activities for output 2 include providing recommendations in preparing investments with regards to natural capital protection, enhancement and management. This also considers innovative approaches such as ecosystem-based adaptation and other nature-based solutions (NbS) to address climate change and disaster risk management. Out of all the activities conducted in output 1, only numbers ii (Bhutan), iv, vii and viii above are purely assessments and do not lead to preparation of natural capital investments. Additional investment preparations under output 2 activities also include supporting ecological protection in the Xin'an River, People's Republic of China; and national level support to promote NbS in road construction through policy reform in Bangladesh.

Output 3:__Ongoing activities under output 3 include the drafting and expert review of legal reforms in the Philippines, particularly amendment to Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act, the implementation of demand reduction measures for at least two priority species, and the capacity building program developed with training for up to 338 government officials in the Philippines (44% women). The project has consolidated the outputs of three public regional consultations which were considered in drafting a second version of a House Bill to amend Republic Act 9147 (Wildlife Act of the Philippines).

Output 4:__ For output 4, cross-cutting knowledge work to capture and disseminate findings and lessons from projects includes the Guidelines for Mainstreaming NbS in ADB Water Sector Investments, Economic Analysis of Nbs in Flood Risk Management, Biodiversity Assessment Study for New Clark City, Assessing Design Standard Guidelines and Sustainability Management for New Clark City, Brochure/Knowledge Products on Addressing the Illegal Wildlife Trade in the Philippines and Bird e-Sensitivity Mapping associated guidance notes. A working paper on integrating NbS for climate change adaptation and disaster risk management in ADB projects is also being developed. Moreover, the TA has supported five regional and seven in-country knowledge and capacity workshops on natural capital including NbS.

The Training for engineers and infrastructure planners (South Asia) was completed under Biodiversity-sensitive infrastructure design component.