Houbara is a unique species that has been categorized as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. Unfortunately hunting and smuggling to the countries in the southern part of the Persian Gulf, as well as habitat degradation and exposure to pesticides has contributed to a serious decline of this species. A previously implemented SGP project on Houbara conservation was successful in raising awareness and forming a local group of volunteer rangers and establishing a local micro-credit fund. However, monitoring of project results has shown that the local community still needs support in terms of financial resources to prevent them from hunting and smuggling this valuable species.
Therefore, this project aims to build on previous experiences, working with local community of Ghalatuyeh Village near the Houbara habitat and continue with awareness raising efforts both for local men and women, continue with training of the local rangers (in framework of MoA signed with DoE), strengthen the micro-credit fund, help in marketing of local products to generate additional incomes for the community in long-term, and organize a national level seminar on Houbara conservation in Yazd.