STEWARD focuses on key regional concerns: 1 ) harmonizing forest, wildlife, and conservation policies 

 to mitigate illegal movement and unsustainable use of natural resources; 2) promoting improved markets 

 and management for high value tree crops that provide benefits to smallholders and help governments 

 diversify extractive-industry based economies; 3) developing a regional presence in global fora for 

 conservation, sustainable development and trade; 4) assisting the region to more effectively manage and 

 capitalize on influxes of investment and trade in natural resources; 5) developing regional strategies for 

 coastal and fisheries management, and (6) accelerating the floM^ of knowledge and experiences about 

 best practices. USPS has led activities including a sub-regional workshop on sustainable forest 

 management held in Conakry, Guinea in November 2007 and has supported Mano River Union (MRU) 

 meetings between the countries of Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Côte d'Ivoire as well. Proceedings 

 from the workshop and MRU meetings and two STEWARD assessments thus far completed will be 

 available online. The two analytical documents produced by STEWARD to date include: 1 ) a desk study 

 called the Biodiversity Analysis and Technical Support for the Sustainable and Thriving Environments 

 for West African Regional Development Program (STEWARD) and 2) a one-month field assessment 

 called the Environmental Assessment and Strategy for the Sustainable and Thriving Environments for 

 West African Regional Development (STEWARD) Program. 



As STEWARD moves through its first year, it will begin to network groups who are building capacity for 

 increased regional collaboration in biodiversity conservation, fisheries, wildlife, forestry, sustainable 

 agriculture and trade within national and regional institutions. A request for applications to receive small 

 grants from STEWARD opened in the summer of 2008 and was posted on the STEWARD FRAME Web 

 site. It will foster regional policy innovations and harmonization of national policies for improved 

 ecosystem conservation and natural resource management. STEWARD will further support 

 transboundary conservation and natural resource management activities at selected sites within the 

 region. Multilateral collaborative action and knowledge sharing is at the heart of the STEWARD 

 approach. As STEWARD develops and evolves, its partners and learning approach can provide a model 

 for regional natural resource management initiatives that extend beyond the bounds of the West African 

 sub-region and demonstrate more effective wildlife management. 



^^^ 



'STEWARD FRAMEweb site: www.frameweb.org/ev en.php?ID=92332 20 1 «feID2=DO COMMUNITY 

 Nature & Faune Vol. 23, Issue 1 



