In responding to his election, Mketeni said the involvement of Africa in this vital global network “will assist our conservation scientists within the continent to interact with globally acclaimed scientists from other areas, while ensuring the full use of national, sub-regional and regional scientific knowledge and expertise in our respective protected areas”.
He said through this platform, key collaborations will be established on biodiversity and ecosystems. “This will ensure credibility, relevance and legitimacy through peer review of scientific work, while also avoiding duplication in various research programs embarked upon – collaboration is the key to excellence in our work in this regard.”
According to Mketeni, there are over a thousand scientists from all over the world who are currently contributing to the work of IPBES on a voluntary basis. “It is for this reason that our country and parts of the continent now struggling with the effects of drought will be able to learn from our peers elsewhere and also share knowledge on our management principles of our protected areas in general.”
The nomination was made at the IPBES session held from 22 to 28 February 2016 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
