Estimating the monetary cost of biological invasions to South Africa

Estimates of the cost of damage caused by invasive alien speices and the money spent addressing biological invasions are needed to guide policy and management. Here, we quantify the known monetary costs of biological invasions to South Africa, using data from the InvaCost database, literature searches, and stakeholders. The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, and agencies directly funded by them, provided most of the information on money spent, with very little information was available from other government agencies and the private sector. There was also very little information on the monetary costs due to the impacts of invasions. Between 1960 and 2023, ZAR9.6 billion (adjusted to 2022 values) was spent managing biological invasions in South Africa. This is only 4