Welcome to the Country Space for Eswatini!
This is a dedicated area for your team to share updates, questions, concerns and insights. The purpose of this space is to strengthen both technical and institutional capacities on gender equality and systems thinking in biodiversity conservation. It also aims to foster inclusive participation by creating opportunities for women’s leadership through multi-stakeholder workshops and the co-creation of gender-responsive, country-specific solutions. By contributing to this space, you’ll also be supporting cross-country learning and helping to amplify impact through shared knowledge and experiences.
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On the 27th August 2025, Hon. Minister of Tourism and Environmental Affairs, Jane Mkhonta-Simelane, officially launched two groundbreaking programmes:
The Umbrella Programme to Support the Update of the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) and the 7th National Report to the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Accelerating Systematic Change for Gender Equality and Biodiversity Conservation through NBSAPs Project.
The launch marks a significant milestone in Eswatini’s commitment to the Convention on Biological Diversity, particularly in advancing the integration of gender-responsive approaches into biodiversity planning.
On the 3rd September 2025, the Eswatini National Trust Commission (ENTC) convened the first of a series of workshops to "Explore the Gender-Biodiversity Nexus in Eswatini", under the Accelerating Systematic Change for Gender Equality and Biodiversity Conservation Project.
Hosted at Happy Valley Hotel in Ezulwini, the workshop brought together government representatives, civil society organizations, academia, and community stakeholders for a strategic dialogue on how gender equality and biodiversity conservation are deeply interconnected.
Through interactive sessions and collaborative groupwork, participants:
• Contributed to the development of a shared national vision for gender-responsive biodiversity conservation
• Identified systemic challenges and barriers within the gender–biodiversity nexus
We are grateful to all participants for their commitment, energy, and expertise in shaping inclusive and sustainable solutions for the future.
Dear Mbali thank you so much for sharing the information on the launch of the project and the workshops!
It is really nice to see that you were using the tools shared in Nairobi and that in this first workshop you were able to develop a shared national vision for gender-responsive biodiversity conservation and identify systemic challenges and barriers.
The pictures are amazing! Thanks for sharing
Congratualations Eswatini for this trailblazing work with women park
Eswatini held a series of capacity‑building workshops from 9–12 February 2026 at Malolotja National Park and Magadzavane Lodge to strengthen gender‑responsive conservation practices among game rangers, park wardens, outreach officers, and human‑resources staff. Facilitated by the Eswatini National Trust Commission under the “Accelerating Systemic Change for Gender Equality and Biodiversity Conservation” project, the workshops highlighted how gender roles, family dynamics, and social structures influence frontline conservation, and provided practical tools for integrating gender considerations into daily operations and decision‑making. The training is expected to enhance staff understanding of gender equality and improve their technical contributions to Eswatini’s NBSAP update and Seventh National Report to the CBD, while promoting more inclusive leadership and stronger collaboration with communities living around protected areas
rangers:https://eswatinipositivenews.online/entc-strengthens-gender-responsive-…;
The capacity building workshops were open to state-owned parks as well as private nature reserves. Of the 43 participants, only 7% were female.
The workshop participants explored:
Increasing women’s involvement at various decision-making levels in conservation begins with conversations like these, alongside recognizing that the receiving environment (both the people and the workplace) must be ready for meaningful change to occur.
THE ROAD TO A GENDER-RESPONSIVE NBSAP 3.0
Through the “Accelerating Systemic Change for Gender Equality and Biodiversity Conservation through NBSAPs" project, Eswatini has conducted national workshops to explore the gender-biodiversity nexus and facilitated community engagement to inform its NBSAP 3.0 process. Through a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, actors from environmental institutions, civil society organizations, and local communities have been consulted to co-identify and co-create solutions that reflect national circumstances and priorities.
A total of 266 stakeholders participated in various national and community-level engagements initiatives. Participation reflected strong inclusion of women, youth and persons with disabilities at community and policy levels, with women comprising of 53% of the participants. The effectiveness of the workshops was measured through the monitoring of self-reported improvement in their understanding of the gender-biodiversity nexus. In 6 out of the 7 workshops, 100% of the participants reported improved understanding of how gender equality relates to biodiversity.
Community consultations reached rural stakeholders across multiple chiefdoms, ensuring that local knowledge and lived experiences inform the development of the Gender Plan of Action and Eswatini’s National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP 3.0).
Thanks for the useful updates, Mbali. I look forward to knowing more about whether and how the perspectives shared in the local consultations and national workshops aligned, and how it will inform the national GPA and NBSAPs.