The
megadiverse countries are a group of countries that harbor the majority of the earth's species and are therefore considered extremely
biodiverse. The
World Conservation Monitoring Centre, an agency of the
United Nations Environment Programme, has identified 17 megadiverse countries
[1] and most of these countries are located in the tropics.
In 2002, a separate organization, Like-Minded Megadiverse Countries, was formed consisting of countries rich in biological diversity and associated traditional knowledge.[2] This organization does not include all the megadiverse countries as identified by the World Conservation Monitoring Centre.
In alphabetical order, the 17 countries identified as megadiverse by the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre are
