Most countries have national biodiversity plans (NBSAPs) in place, as governments committed to develop these under the CBD framework. The plans are first assessed during the scoping phase (see Chapter 2) to determine their status and coverage, and if they are adequate as the central planning document for the BIOFIN Process. Their action plan is the basis for the costing in the FNA (Chapter 5) and is used to formulate finance solutions in the BFP (Chapter 6).

The NBSAP should be summarized in the PIR, describing its legal status and institutional arrangements. In some countries the NBSAP has a formal legal status, whereas in others it is an aspirational document or plan outlining priorities to mobilize further finance. How the government and the private sector treat the NBSAP and other biodiversity strategies could have a major influence on how BIOFIN is perceived and implemented in the country. Countries with a formal NBSAP policy may require less advocacy to invest in the actions. In countries where it has no legal status, the BIOFIN Process can encourage its integration into national development planning and budgeting processes

The institutional arrangements for the implementation and financing of the NBSAP and other key strategic documents should be investigated and described. These may include the roles of different actors responsible for implementing each set of strategies and actions. A list of organizations involved with planning, budgeting, and implementing the NBSAP and other biodiversity strategies should be prepared to ensure their inclusion in the institutional analysis (described below) and the BER (Chapter 4).

If the NBSAP alone is not considered sufficient to address the biodiversity management needs of the country, then it is time to consider results and targets from complementary sources. When important biodiversity-related strategies that significantly impact biodiversity are not cross-referenced in the NBSAP, we recommend expanding the scope of BIOFIN’s work to factor them in. This is essential as other national strategies may have stronger buy-in, potentially higher impacts on biodiversity and can facilitate linking important sectoral policies to biodiversity. This ultimately enhances the chances of securing sufficient finance.

Other biodiversity relevant policy documents to scope out are:

• National sustainable development strategies (green economy, SDGs, etc.)
• Reports for CITES, the Ramsar Convention, and the Convention on Migratory Species
• Protected area expansion strategies, marine and coastal management, biosafety plans (invasive alien species) or desertification and land degradation management plans
• Relevant sectoral strategies, e.g. forestry or fisheries
• Climate change adaptation and mitigation plans and policies