The Government of the Commonwealth of Dominica has received the grant funding from the Global
Environment Facility (GEF), the world's largest funder of biodiversity protection, nature restoration,
pollution reduction, and climate change, for the implementation of the project “Leveraging Eco-tourism
for Biodiversity Protection in Dominica” (LETBP). GEF financing is channeled through the World
Bank, as a GEF ‘implementing agency’. As such, LETBP is being implemented alongside other World
Bank financed operations in Dominica, namely Emergency Agricultural Livelihoods and Climate
Resilience Project (EALCRP).
The EALCRP is part of an overall developmental partnership initiative supporting medium and long-term
recovery in Dominica after the devastating effects of Hurricane Maria, while LETBP focuses on leveraging
Dominica’s natural environment as a driver of economic resilience, in line with the National Biodiversity
Strategy and Action Plan 2014-2020 and the National Resilience Development Strategy 2020-2030. This
overall program of support complements and is aligned with other development partner initiatives and fills
critical gaps for agricultural development and biodiversity conservation.
A Project Implementation Unit (PIU) established within the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Blue and
Green Economy (MAFBGE) coordinates the day-to-day management and execution of the EALCRP and
will also support the administration of the LETBP project in joint execution with the Ministry of
Environment, Rural Modernisation, Kalinago Upliftment and Constituency Empowerment (MERMKUCE).
The PIU works in close coordination with the Central Services Unit (CSU), under the Climate Resilience
Execution Agency of Dominica (CREAD), which supports on procurement, social and environmental risk
management, and financial management, and serves as a shared resource for all World Bank financed
project in Dominica.
Project Description
The LETBP project aims to coordinate and optimize the Government’s approach to Protected Areas (PAs)
management and forest systems and support the Government in its efforts to conserve biodiversity as part of
its pursuit to establish Dominica as an eco-tourism destination. This will be achieved by improving
regulation and enforcement of its natural capital, and by improving the Government’s capacity to manage
PAs in line with international best practice to simultaneously promote biodiversity conservation and
economic development. The project consists of three components each addressing key pillars for eco-
tourism and biodiversity protection and mutually supporting the overall Project Development Objective “to
improve management of Dominica’s three national parks and the Waitukubuli National Trail”.
Key barriers identified to be addressed through the project implementation include (a) a limited integration
of PAs planning and management into national key development processes (land-use planning, agriculture,
forestry management, etc.); (b) a lack of awareness at the decision-making level of the value of the country's
biodiversity; and (c) insufficient baseline data, weak monitoring capacities, and information needed to
measure threats at the ecosystem level. Project components set out policy, investment, and capacity building
and awareness raising interventions to promote conservation through the development opportunities
provided by nature-based tourism, in pursuit of the Project Development Objective and Dominica’s National
Biodiversity Objective.
The first component (Protected Areas Planning) will support strengthening the institutional framework for
PAs planning and management for three national parks (The Morne Trois Pitons National Park, The Morne
Diablotin National Park and The Cabrits National Park) and the Waitukubuli trail network. This component
will also assist in improving national and local capacities for PA monitoring and management through a
strong stakeholder engagement approach and will include a thorough assessment on the role and value of
ecosystem services as well the impact of Invasive Alien Species (IAS). The second component (Biodiversity
and Sustainable Ecotourism Operations) will enhance the physical and institutional environment for the
protection of biodiversity through the sustainable use of landscapes along the Waitukubuli National Trail
(WNT) and in the three National Parks. This component will also improve financial management and visitor
management which will greatly contribute to revenue mobilization, increased visitor experience and
promotion efforts. The third component (Sustainable Livelihoods) will support enhanced opportunities for
sustainable livelihoods for the Kalinago Community along the Waitukubuli National Trail and the areas
surrounding PAs to engage in and benefit from Dominica’s nature-based tourism sector. This will be
accomplished through investment in sustainable land use and through the preservation and inter-
generational transfer of traditional Kalinago knowledge and livelihood training to better integrate in
tourism value chains.
The project will strengthen biodiversity protection, financial management and build capacity for the national
parks and the national trail system personnel, as well as local communities. The direct project beneficiaries
include communities and their members in targeted landscapes, farmers, tour guides, entrepreneurs, small
and medium enterprises (SMEs) and community-based organizations (CBOs). Women, including within the
Kalinago Community, bear the heavy burden of ensuring the livelihood sustainability of rural households
and as of such are expected to benefit significantly. Benefits are expected to include improved access to
skills training for business development, finance and markets, improved local governance, and subsequently
more profitable community- or individually- owned businesses and increased household income, all while
promoting conservation of Dominica’s rich biodiversity endowment.