NNF proudly represented Namibia at the 2025 IUCN World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi, the world’s largest gathering of conservation leaders, policymakers, scientists, indigenous voices and youth.  This year’s theme, Turning Dialogue into Action, echoed strongly through our engagements.

Our Delegation

A multidisciplinary team from NNF brought Namibia’s unique voice to the global stage.  Each delegate contributed insights from their field, sharing Namibia’s success in community-based conservation, marine and freshwater protection, sustainable forestry and biodiversity governance.

Highlights from the Week

The Congress opened with a powerful call for revitalised global governance.  Leaders emphasised that multilateralism and community voices are vital for a nature-positive future.

Species Conservation Funding Priority

Angus Middleton spoke in a plenary session titled Scaling Effective Funding for Species.  He joined global leaders and major funding stakeholders to explore practical mechanisms that can deliver sustainable financing for biodiversity recovery.  Angus emphasised the need for long-term, flexible funding models tailored to complex and often site-specific realities on the ground.  He argued that consistent, modest investment over decades often achieves more than short bursts of large-scale funding that lack sustainability.  His reflections prompted meaningful discussions on defining success in conservation and planning for life beyond recovery goals.

KAZA & Fisheries Ecosystem Panel

NNF led a dynamic panel on advancing the 30×30 initiative for freshwater ecosystems within the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA).  The session brought together stakeholders from the KAZA region to examine opportunities for scaling community stewardship, regional collaboration and policy alignment.  Panellists explored how freshwater ecosystems, often overlooked in terrestrial-focused frameworks, can be protected through inclusive, locally embedded conservation models.  The discussion reinforced NNF’s commitment to people-centred approaches that respect ecological and cultural systems alike.

Decolonising Conservation Side Event

Tessa Iiyambula joined a high-impact session at the African Pavilion focused on “Decolonising Conservation in Africa”.  The conversation addressed structural power imbalances in conservation, calling for models that are locally led, culturally rooted and driven by communities themselves.  NNF’s participation in this event reflected the organisation’s ethos of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) as the architects of sustainable conservation.

Ocean Governance Dialogue

Angus Middleton participated in a panel on Strengthening Africa-EU Ocean Partnerships for a Sustainable Blue Future.  The session focused on operationalising the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement and building inclusive, science-based frameworks for international ocean governance.  Angus stressed the urgency of breaking silos between regulatory bodies, industry policy makers and scientists.  He spotlighted Namibia’s efforts in cross-sectoral collaboration and science-led marine policy, contributing to Africa’s growing leadership in ocean governance ahead of key global summits.

The Congress affirmed NNF’s belief that inclusive, locally-led conservation is the key to long-term impact.  From the coasts to the conservancies, Namibia has much to offer and much to learn through global collaboration.