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Media Statement
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism
TUESDAY, 10 JUNE 2008:
Contracting Parties to the Convention for Cooperation in the Protection and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment of the West and Central African Region, the Abidjan Convention are meeting in South Africa today, Tuesday 10 June 2008 to strengthen strategies in response to increasing challenges marine and coastal environments are faced with.
Chairing the meeting, South Africa’s Deputy Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism Ms Rejoice Mabudafhasi indicated that fisheries continue to decline, coastal ecosystems and marine biodiversity, which are critical in maintaining a healthy and resilient ecosystems are still under considerable threat in the face of climate change.
“It is well known that the Abidjan Convention area covers some of the most productive coastal and marine ecosystems in the world, rich in oil, gas and mineral resources and with a great potential for tourism. The coastal zones of the convention area are hubs for intense socio-economic activities, centres of human settlements, transport, industrial and commercial activities.”, Mabudhafasi said.
Highlighting the challenges she said the state of these environments is affected by activities carried out on land, activities varying from industrial and agricultural production to daily domestic routines. Pollution from the industrial effluent and agricultural activities including oil spillages affect the health of these ecosystems and of the people that depend on them.
More recently new threats have emerged in particular invasive alien species and climate change and with it ocean acidification.
While conservation efforts for the worlds marine environment have increased and expanded in recent years including efforts within the area covered by the Abidjan Convention, Mabudafhasi said there is still a great deal of work that needs to be done in order to meet a variety of global targets, particularly the target of the Convention on Biological Diversity 2010 target of reducing significantly biodiversity loss, the Millennium Development Goal of eradicating poverty and promoting environmental sustainability,
The meeting happens as Ministers across the continent are gathering at the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN) at the Sandton International Convention Centre. “The fact that this meeting is held back to back with AMCEN indicates commitment for African development Agenda and our collaboration with the NEPAD action plan for the environment.”, said Mabudafhasi.
The Ministers of Environment from the Contracting Parties countries of Benin, Cameroon, Democratic Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Togo are attending this attending this Extraordinary Meeting. Ministers of Environment from the 8 non-contracting Parties countries of Angola, Cape Verde, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mauritania, Namibia and Sao Tome and Principe are also invited to the meeting.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Abidjan Convention provides a framework for regional cooperation in the protection, management and development of the marine and coastal environment, for sustainable socioeconomic growth and prosperity in Africa
The Convention for Cooperation in the Protection and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment in the West and Central region, commonly known as the Abidjan Convention, was adopted in 1981 and entered into force in 1984.
The Protocol Concerning Cooperation in Combating Pollution in Cases of Emergency was adopted by 11 countries at a Conference in Abidjan in March 1981. By 2007, 14 countries out of 22 had signed, acceded to, or ratified the Abidjan Convention and includes the following Contracting Parties: Benin, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Togo.
South Africa joined the Abidjan Convention in 2001 and ratified in November 2002.
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