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Good practice Imported

Biocredit Investment Operations (BIO) — Tondwa Game Management Area Biodiversity Credit Pilot

Zambia · Nsama · See the Zambia profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 99% 13/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

A UK Darwin Initiative-funded pilot (GBP 525,573, 2023-2026) led by IIED with Conserve Global and Tondwa Conservation is designing Zambia's first community biodiversity-credit scheme across the 440 sq km Tondwa Game Management Area, alongside a parallel Uganda site.

525,573 GBP
Darwin Initiative project funding (April 2023-March 2026)
440 km2
Tondwa Game Management Area size
1 Nature Investment Certificate = 10-year conservation/restoration agreement for 1 hectare
Credit unit definition
~300,000 ha
Ambition for scaled biodiversity-crediting area (across Zambia and Uganda sites (ambition, not yet achieved))
Biocredit Investment Operations (BIO) — Tondwa Game Management Area Biodiversity Credit Pilot

Details

Maturity
Pilot
Promoter
International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), with Conserve Global, Tondwa Conservation Ltd and ValueNature/Credit Nature
Period
2023-2026
Keywords
community-led conservation, wildlife biodiversity credits, UK Darwin Initiative, game management area

Context

Tondwa Game Management Area covers 440 km2 in Zambia's Kaputa District, forming part of a wetland and miombo-woodland corridor around Lake Tanganyika within a recognised Key Biodiversity Area whose wildlife populations have declined due to limited government funding and law-enforcement capacity.

Objectives

Design Zambia's first community biodiversity-credit scheme, in which most revenue is intended to flow to the local community, which holds formal biodiversity management rights in partnership with the NGO Conserve Global.

Activities

The Biocredit Investment Operations (BIO) project, funded with GBP525,573 by the UK government's Darwin Initiative (Defra) for April 2023-March 2026, is led by IIED together with Conserve Global, Tondwa Conservation Ltd and, on a parallel pilot site in Uganda's Albertine Rift, EcoTrust Uganda; the credit methodology was developed by ValueNature (since merged into Credit Nature), defining one credit - a Nature Investment Certificate - as a 10-year agreement to conserve or restore one hectare of habitat.

Results

As of 2026 this remains a pilot: no independently verified before/after biodiversity outcomes or completed credit sales have been published for Tondwa.

Conclusions

Project partners have publicly discussed an ambition to scale biodiversity crediting across roughly 300,000 hectares spanning the Zambia and Uganda sites, contingent on enabling government policy and buyer demand still being developed - a useful reminder that funded design and a defined credit unit are not yet the same thing as proven, verified conservation impact.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Low (< €50k)
Time to results
Short (< 1 year)
Staffing & skills
International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) - lead, Conserve Global, Tondwa Conservation Ltd (Zambia site partners), EcoTrust Uganda (parallel Uganda pilot site), ValueNature/Credit Nature (credit methodology developer)

Conditions for success

  • Formal community biodiversity-management rights established before credit design
  • A clearly defined, standardised credit unit (Nature Investment Certificate)
  • A revenue-sharing structure designed so most revenue flows to the local community

Common failure modes

  • As of 2026 no independently verified before/after biodiversity outcomes or completed credit sales have been published
  • Scaling ambition (~300,000ha) is contingent on enabling government policy and buyer demand that are still being developed

Commonly funded by

Philanthropic / foundation funding

Indicative funding routes for practices of this type — always check each programme's current calls and eligibility rules.

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Data sources

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