The mandate of the BU is to mainstream biodiversity issues into all sectors, facilitate coordination of institutions, provide a platform for discussion for all stakeholders and as a result, to design and implement activities to respond to the challenges faced by Mozambique in this area. It meets at least quarterly but members can request extraordinary meetings if necessary. The BU provides technical advice to MICOA and CONDES (National Council for Sustainable Development). It also identifies opportunities for alignment and synergies with the work of other relevant groups such as the Inter-institutional Group on Climate Change, the Green Economy Group and the Biodiversity-related Conventions (Termos de referenda da Unidade de Biodiversidade draft, 09/04/13).