Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena

The Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena biodiversity hotspot contains some of the wettest rain forests on Earth, with amphibians, plants, and birds being particularly diverse.

The hotspot's Chocó region is globally recognized as one of the world's most biologically diverse, providing habitat to an estimated 9,000 vascular plant species.

Previously known as Chocó-Darién-Western Ecuador, this hotspot has been expanded to encompass new areas and retitled as a result of a hotspots reappraisal released in 2005.

Threats
Direct threats to biodiversity include agricultural encroachment, deforestation, fishing and shrimp farming, illegal crops, population growth, and social conflict. In coastal Ecuador, where the region is under the greatest threat, only 2 percent of the original forest cover remains.

Strategy
Within the hotspot, the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) strategically focuses on the Chocó-Manabí Conservation Corridor in Colombia and Ecuador.

CEPF seeks to facilitate the initial implementation phase of Vision 2010, a common vision and strategy for the corridor agreed to in 2001 by Colombia and Ecuador government representatives, nongovernmental organizations, and scientists.

Vision 2010 is designed to maximize investments and strengthen alliances among national, regional, and local stakeholders to protect biodiversity while improving the quality of life of communities within the corridor.

Three strategic directions guide CEPF's approach in the Chocó-Manabí Conservation Corridor:
  1. establish/strengthen local and regional mechanisms to foster corridor-level conservation
  2. bring selected protected areas and species under improved management
  3. identify and promote sustainable development practices in communities near selected protected areas
Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena

Investment Priorities
Full Strategy
Project Database for this Region