Lifeline for Asian and African Sea Turtles First meeting of new multilateral environment agreement
General Press Releases วันพุธที่ ๒๒ มกราคม พ.ศ. ๒๕๔๖ ๑๓:๓๓ น.In Bangkok today, the first meeting of the Signatory States to the Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation and Management of Marine Turtles and their Habitats of the Indian Ocean and South-East Asia began, attended by representatives and observers from 20 countries from around the region.
Six species of marine turtles found in the region's waters are threatened by accidental capture in industrial fishing operations, as well as unsustainable harvesting at nesting sites and in near-shore waters. Destruction of nesting beaches from inappropriate coastal development is also a major threat. The need to better coordinate conservation efforts has led governments to sign up to the new environmental agreement developed under the auspices of the Convention on Migratory Species ? an international treaty linked to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer described the meeting as historic. "Countries of the region are now committed to work together to ensure the future of one of the most charismatic inhabitants of our marine environment."
The memorandum puts in place a Conservation and Management Plan that focuses on reducing threats, conserving critical habitat, exchanging scientific data, increasing public awareness and participation, promoting regional cooperation and seeking resources for implementation.
The agreement is designed to reverse the decline in populations of loggerhead, olive ridley, green, hawksbill, leatherback and flatback turtles and the management plan contains 24 programmes and 105 specific activities.
UNEP provided an initial start-up grant for the secretariat of the new agreement, which will be based in Bangkok, alongside its Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific and East Asian Seas Regional Coordinating Unit, with major financial support from the United States, Australia, France, United Kingdom and its parent Convention on Migratory Species.
During the meeting's inauguration, UNEP announced the appointment of Douglas Hykle, the current Deputy Executive Secretary of the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS), to the post of Coordinator/Senior CMS Advisor.
Mr Hykle facilitated the negotiation of the memorandum over the past three years, and has more than 15 years experience with CMS and the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). He take up his position in March and will be supported by a new Advisory Committee to be established at the meeting, which continues until Friday.
On his new appointment, Mr. Hykle said, "Implementation of this agreement should mark a turning point in the conservation of Indian Ocean and South-East Asian marine turtles. At the same time, the important work of Convention on Migratory Species will benefit from having a regional presence, which the Bangkok office will bring." He went on to note that a parallel agreement, also developed under CMS, is already in place for marine turtles of the Atlantic coast of Africa.
Mr Toepfer said, "here we have a practical example of the synergy and inter-linkages that are needed in the international environmental arena. We hope it will be a model for many other multilateral environmental agreements, large and small, in pooling resources and gaining critical mass by working daily in close cooperation with different organizations."
His comments come just a fortnight before UNEP's 22nd Governing Council meeting and Global Ministerial Environment Forum in Nairobi, which will deal with an ambitious agenda of issues drawn from the outcomes of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, and 60 days before the UNEP-led World Water Day on March 22, which will focus attention on the many responses to water management issues being made around the globe.
Madagascar and the Seychelles added their names as signatories to the marine turtle agreement at the start of today's meeting, joining Australia, Cambodia, Comores, Islamic Republic of Iran, Kenya, Mauritius, Myanmar, Philippines, Sri Lanka, United Republic of Tanzania, Vietnam, United Kingdom and the United States of America.
The other Range States for the Memorandum ? whose turtle populations face similar threats -- are Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Egypt, Eritrea, France, India, Jordan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mozambique, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
In Bangkok, Tim Higham, Regional Information Officer, UNEP, Bangkok, phone +66 2 288 2127, email higham@un.org; or Douglas Hykle, Deputy Executive Secretary, UNEP/CMS Secretariat, phone +66 2 288 1387 (Bangkok) or +49 228 815 2401 / 2407 (Bonn), email dhykle@cms.unep.de, Web www.wcmc.org.uk/cms
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