On 29 January 2026, the COMBO+ Programme – a partnership between the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), BIOFUND, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Environment and Fisheries (MAAP), through the National Directorate for Environment and Climate Change (DINAMC) – held the first Validation Workshop for the African Elephant Biodiversity Metric in Mozambique. The event marked an important step in strengthening technical tools to assess biodiversity losses and gains associated with development projects in the country.

This initiative is part of national efforts to reconcile economic development with biodiversity conservation, in line with the mitigation hierarchy and Ministerial Diploma No. 55/2022 of 19 May, which regulates the implementation of biodiversity offsets in Mozambique. The workshop brought together around 45 participants, including academics, national and international elephant conservation specialists, members of the IUCN African Elephant Specialist Group, environmental consultants, development project proponents, and other stakeholders.

The main objective was to present and discuss the conceptual and methodological framework of the metric developed for the African elephant, a priority species for conservation in Mozambique, classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List and protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). In the face of increasing development pressures, habitat loss and fragmentation, and human–wildlife conflict, the metric aims to support impact assessment and the definition of more effective biodiversity offset measures.

This is the fifth biodiversity metric developed under the COMBO+ Programme, following metrics for coral reefs, miombo forests, mangroves, and seagrass, and it aims to ensure the effective application of the principles of No Net Loss or Net Gain of biodiversity. The process is led by Dr. Valério Macandza, a specialist in wildlife ecology and conservation, who presented the scientific basis, methodology, and criteria for calculating biodiversity losses and gains.

Through this initiative, the Government of Mozambique and its partners reaffirm their commitment to innovative technical solutions that promote more balanced development and the conservation of one of the country’s most emblematic species.