Integration of Natural Capital Accounting Into Lesotho's Policy And Decision Making For Sustainable Development To mainstream natural capital into integrated watershed management through application of natural capital accounting in Lesotho. Note: Disbursement data provided is cumulative and covers disbursement made by the project Agency. The integration of water and land ecosystem accounts at the local level will strengthen the local community capacity for selecting land use enterprises that optimise the available local resources (soil fertility, water and accessible land area). Therefore, at the local community and household level, it is expected that individual households and communities will be able to achieve improved socio-economic performance at the farm level. The project will strengthen community relations and the contribution of women, youth and other marginalised groups. It is therefore, envisaged that the project will lead to improved social equity with increased participation of women and youth in community land use/ socieo economic enterprises.  The NCA will provide information that will allow the country to implement some of its international commitments to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the United Nations Convention on Combatting Desertification (UNCCD). Through the catchment and land use planning, and the ecosystem based approaches the country can meet some its NDC greenhouse gas mitigation targets through ecosystem restoration and management, through strengthened conservation of protected areas, and ecosystems outside protected areas, and support the agenda on land degradation neutrality. The NCA approach will provide options for inclusion of ecosystem based adaptation as an alternative to existing land use systems. Therefore, the Government of Lesotho will have clear opportunities for mitigation soil erosion, minimising the non-point source erosion flow into the Orange-Senqu River, and scaling-up efforts in reforestation, conservation of fragile wetlands. The communities and civil society/ NGOs will be able to contribute to landscape restoration activities due to the improved availability of information.  The project is cognisant that the Orange Senqu River is a regional water resource, and its conservation is important for the other riparian countries Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and South Africa. The NCA will provide transparent information on the risks and contributions of the USC to the sustainability of the river. In addition to strengthening the confidence of the other countries on the efforts in Lesotho to conserve the resource, the NCA may spur additional discussions and enable additional contributions both regionally and internationally to further strengthen the efforts of conserving the Orange Senqu river and the catchment management efforts. Lesotho relies on water both an export commodity to South Africa, and an engine for national economic growth through agriculture, tourism, and industry, among others. The availability of NCA data will enhance the accuracy of the system of national accounts (SNA) and encourage appropriations in the national budget for natural capital management. Consequently, the sustainability of natural capital will be an integral component of national planning and budgeting, and other fiscal policy decisions.