The Succulent Karoo hotspot, which covers an area of approximately 116,000 km2 in Namibia and South Africa, is an appropriate recipient of CEPF investment for several reasons. The region's levels of plant diversity and endemism rival those of rain forests, making the Succulent Karoo an extraordinary exception to the low diversity typical of arid areas and the only arid ecosystem to be recognized as a global biodiversity hotspot. Nearly one-third of the floral species of the region are unique to the hotspot and the region boasts the richest variety of succulent flora in the world (just under one-third of the Succulent Karoo’s flora are succulents). In addition to its floral diversity, the hotspot is a center of diversity for reptiles and many groups of invertebrates.