May 22, 2024 – Ottawa, Canada – Global Affairs Canada

Today, the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of International Development, announced $15 million in funding from Canada over 3 years to Birds Canada to support biodiversity and the health of ecosystems in Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Panama and Peru through the Conserva Aves initiative.

Conserva Aves will help members of communities, particularly women, Indigenous people and Afro-descendant people, conserve more than 2 million hectares of land spanning a variety of biodiverse ecosystems in 100 key sites across the Latin American and Caribbean region.

This comes at a time when the region is facing increasing threats to its biodiversity that are disrupting natural systems and animal species, as well as the lives and livelihoods of millions of people. These threats are impacting the health of migratory bird populations—many of which live in Canada for part of the year.

The initiative supports Canada’s commitments under its International Biodiversity Program, which seeks to improve biodiversity and the health of ecosystems, on which people depend, specifically in the most vulnerable regions of the world.

Minister Hussen made the announcement at an event hosted by Birds Canada to celebrate International Day for Biological Diversity. The event brought together national and international leaders committed to advancing environmental conservation and sustainable development.