South Africa is a special country, with diverse cultures, remarkable geological wealth and exceptional biodiversity, much of which is unique to our nation. The diversity and uniqueness of South Africa’s species and ecosystems makes us one of the world’s 17 megadiverse nations. We are ranked in the top three nations globally when it comes to plant and marine species found nowhere else on earth, and we have a wide array of ecosystem types across the landscape and seascape.
This biodiversity wealth gives our people tangible benefits like food, clean water, medicine and materials; it supports agricultural and fisheries production and helps protect us from natural hazards like floods and droughts; and it provides the basis of a vibrant tourism industry while offering natural spaces for recreational and cultural activities.
With this rich endowment comes the responsibility and challenge of ensuring our species and ecosystems are conserved and used sustainably to the benefit of all South Africans and future generations.
The National Biodiversity Assessment (NBA) is the primary tool for monitoring and reporting on the state of biodiversity in South Africa. It is used to inform policies, strategies and actions for managing and conserving biodiversity more effectively.
- Download a flyer about the National Biodiversity Assessment here
- Download the Contextual and Operational Framework of South Africa’s National Biodiversity Assessment here
The latest NBA was released in October 2019. Led by SANBI in collaboration with over 90 other institutions, the NBA 2018 (named for the year of the data underpinning the assessment) involved nearly five years’ ground breaking work from 2015 to 2019, with input from over 470 contributors.
Click here to access the various products from NBA 2018 – which include seven technical reports, a synthesis report, various supplementary materials, datasets and popular outputs.
Previous NBAs can be accessed here:
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