Just ahead of the 16th Conference of Parties (COP16) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), people of Afro origin in Latin America and the Caribbean have reiterated their demands for land rights and recognition of their role in conservation of biodiversity.
National censuses estimate that 21 per cent of the total population of the region is of African descent, which is a little more than 154 million people.
Afro-descendant communities in this region are founded by Africans fleeing their enslavers—the area saw slavery between the 16th and the 19th century. They took refuge in remote regions like the Pacific Southwest, the Cerrado and the Amazon and over the years, these communities have protected the biodiversity in the area.
Now, Afro-descendant communities are increasingly facing violence and displacement from these lands due to expansion of agro-industrial activities.
In June, at an event on “Securing Afro-descendant Peoples’ Land Tenure Rights in Latin America and the Caribbean: An Effective Pathway to Conservation and Climate Change Action” held in Bogotá, Colombia, a series of demands were put in place for improving the lives of the Afro-descendent community.
Among these are three which specifically pertain to CBD. The group demanded inclusion of the term ‘Afro-descendants Peoples’ in the CBD and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change along with other international instruments, mechanisms, bodies, and protocols.
The group also requested the inclusion in the institutional arrangement for the CBD Working Group on Article 8 (j) and its related provisions and incorporating a new provision relating to the issues of Afro-descendant Peoples.
There was also a demand for forming a CAUCUS of the Afro-descendant Peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean within CBD.
At a press conference on October 15, 2024, researchers presented maps and data revealing overlap between Afro-descendant lands and biodiversity hotspots. These are available in an atlas prepared by organisations representing the group.
The maps indicate that there are Afro-descendant Peoples in 15 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean amounting to more than 32,690,589.2 hectares of rural lands in 14 of these countries (except Brazil). However, only around 8,301,343.8 hectares of this land has been titled to the community and another 5,211,699.4 hectares is in the process of recognition and demarcation. “These areas are very important for biodiversity and climate change resilience,” says John Antón Sanchez, researcher, Proceso de Comunidades Negras, who has worked on this Atlas.
Collective ownership of lands located in Afro descendant ancestral territories is considered a necessary strategy for the life, culture, and future of upcoming generations.
This is especially important as much of this land is located in special environmental conservation areas. These areas are rich in biodiversity, have abundant water resources, and are rich in natural resources, especially minerals.
Many of these areas are part of the protected areas but there are fears that as boundaries are not very clear, more institutional action is needed. Similarly, it is essential to promote legal recognition of Afro-descendant territories as “conservation areas” with community governance mechanisms and their own administrative capacity.
“We have rights to the ancestral land that we have occupied,” says Epsy Campbell Barr, UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, former vice president of Costa Rica. Many of the resources in these countries have been historically safeguarded by people of Afro origin, she adds. Historical rights should be covered by legal rights and must be guaranteed by a legal framework, and this is a must for the future safeguarding of these lands, she explains.
There would be discussions on this at COP16. With COP15 taking decisions to include indigenous peoples and local communities in the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, it is time to take action to be more inclusive and involve everyone who has played a role in protecting biodiversity.