Speaking in an exclusive interview with the Daily Observer, the project coordinator, Abubacarr Kujabi, disclosed that the ultimate objective of the COAST project is to demonstrate best practices & strategies to reduce the degradation of marine and coastal environments , and to enhance sustainable tourism practices and approaches for sustainable tourismin Africa.

The project, which was launched in Kartong village as one of the demonstration sites on 15th December 2012, is being implemented by the National Environment Agency (NEA) in collaboration with the Gambia Tourism Board. The objective is to "demonstrate and support the adoption of best practice approaches for sustainable tourism that reduces the degradation of marine and coastal environments of trans-boundary significance".

According to Kujabi, who doubles as the Programme Assistant for Coastal Zone Management Unit (CZMU) at the NEA, the project will provide cross-learning lessons on how to sustain the emerging and dynamic tourism sector in Africa. He said it also safeguards the fragile coastal ecosystems within the context of rapidly changing environments and increased international tourism.

He continued: "The project is expected to implement the following activities in Kartong within the lifespan of the project: Promotion of village tours, introducing camping, demonstrations of Gambian home cooking, bicycle hiring, cross-village excursions, promoting/developing craft, introduction of sports tourism, training and awareness raising on sustainable environment management, production of maps of the demo site and public private partnership planning."

Kujabi revealed that under the project, Kartong's ancient sacred site Folonko crocodile pool will be rehabilitated. "To introduce more environmentally-friendly activities, the project already bought and handed over 20 wheel-waste bins and 10 bicycles to Kartong Association for Responsible Tourism (KART)," he added.

He further revealed that the project will organise a one-day triathlon (run, bike and regatta style rowing competition on the Allahein Bolong) during the Kartong Annual Cultural Festival.The purpose, he said, is to enhance the capacity of stakeholders within the project area. Kujabi added that the project recently conducted a three-day cross learning training on Responsible Tourism and environmental management held in Kartong.

He further disclosed that the project will also train 20 members of the community on environmental protection and management issues to enable them to protect the marine and coastal ecosystems. "In addition to a Training of Trainers (TOT) for six KART and VDC members to build capacity within the community for further replications, the project would also develop Tesito Camp into a camping site with modern facilities and enhance the Sandele craft showcase by introducing new craft products, among a long list of benefiting programmes and activities KART and VDC will benefit," Kujabi added.

He thanked the community for taking ownership of the project, which according to him, is a testimony that the project will be sustainable. He further urged the villagers to synergise tourism and tradition as there are lots of untapped opportunities that the village can harness to enhance responsible tourism while at the same improving their livelihood.

The COAST Project is a UNEP implemented, Global Environmental Facility (GEF) supported project that is executed by UNIDO in collaboration with UNWTO (UN World Tourism Organization). The COAST project also promotes rights of indigenous people by identifying community needs and gaps through community visioning exercise particularly regarding ecotourism developments and subsistence resource uses in protected areas in its three demo sites in Kartong, Tumani Tenda and Denton Bridge.

Countries involved in the project are: Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Seychelles and The Gambia.

For this Article source check here

Quarterly Newsletter, February 2013/Edition 2

The  COAST Project Newsletter is an easy to read 26 page Newsletter that highlights some developments in the subject of sustainable coastal tourism in the global discourse and progress in COAST Project implementation.

The September Edition of this Newsletter contains the following stories and articles:

• A Foreword by Mr. FRÉDÉRIC PIERRET the UNWTO Executive Director
• A Cover Story on Governance and Management Mechanisms for Sustainable Coastal Tourism in Africa
• Lessons and experiences emerging from COAST Project implementation in Kribi, Cameroon
• Some News from the COAST Demo Sites in all the nine Project Countries
• A picture gallery of the COAST Demo Site activities
• A Question & Answer Section with Mr. Marcel Leijzer, the UNWTO Programme Coordinator
• An Opinion Article on implementing Environmental Management System (EMS) in Africa

Download the PDF Newsletter Edition here.

Download the French Edition of this Newsletter here

Please, share with us your feedback on any of these stories. if you want us to follow up on any of these stories, or would wish more information on these articles, please write to the COAST Project's Knowledge Management and Communications Officer on the contacts below.

THE EDITORIAL TEAM - UNIDO COAST PROJECT

Office Number: +254 20 7625286

Cell. Number: +254 722 508010

E-mail: G.Omedo@unido.org

The Guardian, Thursday 14 February 2013 20.04 GMT

Standing among coconut and mango trees near the coast of Mozambique, Fernando Nhamussua carefully prepares shark meat for a family meal – and contemplates a basket with a profitable haul of four dried shark fins.

"I want to sell them to the Chinese," the 33-year-old admits with disarming candour, estimating that a kilogram's worth will fetch around 5,000 meticals (£104). "We take them to town where there is a place for Chinese buyers. It's good money."

Nhamussua reckons he has sold 20 fins so far, boosting his normal income and his hopes of completing a modest concrete house that stands unfinished. But this burgeoning trade along the Mozambican coast is putting precious species such as manta rays in existential danger, according to local conservationists.

Fishing for sustenance has long been a staple here, with few alternative sources of income. But it is an open secret that Chinese syndicates are supplying improved fishing nets, buying shark fins and manta ray "wing" tips and shipping them back to Asia, where there is increasing demand for delicacies such as shark fin soup.

Nhamussua's nephew, Americo Gilamba, is 19 and has scant other career prospects. "We do it because we don't have a good job," he explained, standing in the small, sandy family settlement that includes huts made of reeds and coconut leaves. "We know it's not good and the Chinese are killing things that are not allowed to be killed, but we do it to survive and get some money. We don't want to have to steal from other people. If we were given an alternative, we would stop."

Inhambane's beaches and ocean are a diver's paradise with one of the most fabulous concentrations of marine life in the world. Tourism, a vital lifeline in one of the world's poorest countries, could be threatened.

Carla Victorino Guicome, who last year became the first Mozambican woman to qualify as a diving instructor, said: "I am sad, I am angry because if it continues like this it's going to kill tourism in Mozambique. No more tourists will come here."

Shark fin harvesting in Mozambique. Photograph: Alamy

She continued: "People come from all over the world to enjoy diving with sharks and manta rays, but if this goes on, they won't be there any more.

"The Chinese don't respect marine life and they're trying to destroy our heritage. We have tried and tried, but the government don't seem to be doing anything to stop it. If nothing is done, the animals will disappear."

Conservationists have called for legal protection of species such as sharks and manta rays, the banning of gillnets – which create a wall of netting to catch fish – and greater education of and alternative livelihoods for fishermen. But the fisheries ministry is powerful.

Andrea Marshall, director of the Marine Megafauna Foundation in Tofu, said: "I would argue that far more people benefit from tourism here than from the fishing industry. The economic argument for preserving these charismatic animals in the long term surely outweighs a one-off profit for a few fishermen and Chinese."

Time is running out for the manta ray, a beautiful fish with big, triangular pectoral "wings" that has a meagre reproductive cycle.

Inhambane has one of the biggest populations in the world, with 908 known to the foundation, but has witnessed an 87% drop in the past decade. This means that where visitors could once expect to see six or seven of the creatures in a single dive, now the average is less than one.

Marshall, principal scientist for the manta ray programme, said: "We're looking at decimation in the next decade or decade-and-a-half. Manta rays are in big trouble along the coastline. If current trends continue, I don't give this population more than a few generations."

Fishermen are more efficient than ever before thanks to bigger nets and more sophisticated equipment. "Sometimes the fishing nets are given by the Chinese, other times they're part of official schemes intended to benefit fishing communities," Marshall added. "We've been to the fishing camps and you can see the high-quality hooks and lines that they have now."

And when she followed the money, it led to China. "It's a very secretive operation, but we've had confirmation of the Chinese buying and shipping them out. There are containers that are just reeking. Everyone knows who owns those containers, but nobody does anything."

Many Chinese people are in Inhambane on legitimate business and working on government infrastructure programmes.

But the fishing controversy echoes wider concerns over what some in Africa regard as a Faustian pact with China. The Environmental Investigation Agency has said nearly half of the timber exported from Mozambique to China is done so illegally, costing the impoverished nation tens of millions of dollars a year.

Based on evidence given by fishermen, the Guardian visited a Chinese-run shop said to be a front for the illicit trade in marine life; an expensive car was parked outside. Its owners said they were aware of such trade in recent years, but claimed it had declined of late. Asked where shark fins could be obtained, a co-owner shook her head and said: "I don't know."

But Lon Chen, a resident of five years and owner of a supermarket in Inhambane, claimed that he been offered such items in the past. "The local people kill them and bring them," he said.

"They came here to ask if we needed it or not. I said no, but some Chinese are buying that kind of food. They don't eat it at all; they are buying it to export to Asia. It's their business and they're surviving on that."

Mozambican authorities are said to be taking the problem seriously, but are working with limited resources, including only one or two patrol boats to cover the immense coastline, although focusing on Inhambane with its abundant marine life would be a start.

Carlos Carvalho, an activist based in the capital, Maputo, claimed that sea turtles and dolphins are also being targeted for their flippers and organs, although observers in Inhambane could not verify this. Chinese traders are seeking to obtain boats to extend the fishermen's range, he added.

"The Chinese are gangsters and they have the protection of certain officials in Inhambane province," Carvalho said. "Every month it is escalating. Inhambane is out of control. It is the killing field of Mozambique and nobody is doing anything about it. It absolutely devastates me."

But the issues are complex and there is a danger that fishermen will be scapegoated. Timothy Dykman, director of Ocean Revolution, said: "It's about the markets, conditions and global impacts far beyond the control of local fishermen that are being run by organised criminal networks. Networks are also selling drugs and engaged in human trafficking."

A fisherman with a hammerhead shark caught off the coast of Mozambique. ‘We do it to survive,’ one man said. Photograph: Alamy

This article is available here

“……… We recognize that oceans are critical to sustaining Earth’s life support systems. Careless exploitation of the oceans and their resources puts at risk the ability of oceans to continue to provide food, other economic benefits and environmental services to humankind.  We stress the importance of the conservation, sustainable management and equitable sharing of marine and ocean resources. We also recognize the significant economic, social and environmental contribution of coral reefs to island and coastal States, and support cooperation based on the Coral Triangle Initiative (CTI), and the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI)……..”

Excerpts from ’The Future We Want UNCSD Rio+20 Declaration’ by the World Leaders, Rio de Janeiro, 22^nd June 2012.

Introduction: The Rio+20 Summit

The statement above amply summarizes the global leaders call for action in ensuring the sustainable utilization of coastal ecosystems including seas, oceans, and the marine bio diversity for socio economic development ventures that includes tourism. This statement is part of the declaration developed and adopted by the leaders and representatives of 191 UN Members states including 79 Heads of State and Government who attended the recently concluded UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20).

The Summit was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 13-24 June 2012 amid a backdrop of a weakened global economy, dampening the global expectations from this year’s conference. However, after heightened negotiations and sustained advocacy by civil society organizations, UN agencies, the curtains finally fell on the conference with some ‘glimmer of hope’ as, the global leaders issued what is hoped to be, yet another important declaration for the future of sustainable development. Many of the civil society stakeholders and environmental activists who attended the Summit however regret the failure by the international community to include ‘concrete or measurable results in key areas’ within this agreement.

Rio+20 Outcomes: In the Context of COAST Project Work in Africa

Many stakeholders are continuing to analyze the process, final products and way forward of Rio+20, and opinion remains divided on the final impact of the Rio+20 conferences. However, it is clear that for sustainable coastal tourism issues in the context of the COAST Project, this declaration is a step in the right direction. The Collaborative Actions for Sustainable Tourism (COAST) Project is working in 9 coastal states in Africa (Cameroon, Senegal, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, the Gambia, Ghana, Nigeria and Seychelles) to enhance the adoption of Best Available Practices/Technologies for sustainable tourism practices in three main thematic areas; Eco-tourism Practices, Environmental Management Systems by hotels and Reef and Marine Recreation Management.

The COAST Project hopes to document working best practices on the afore-mentioned thematic areas and other areas such as waste management, energy efficiency, community participation in tourism and conservation of coral reefs through proactive engagement with the tourism sector. These are at the very core of some of the final Rio+20 outcomes. Indeed, the final outcomes in the Rio+20 Declaration highlighted issues around oceans and coastal marine biodiversity and the need to conserve them. In addition, and for the very first time, the issue of sustainable tourism was part and parcel of the deliberations at Rio+20 and was included in the outcome document from the conference.

On sustainable tourism, the global Leaders emphasized that well-designed and managed tourism could make a significant contribution to the three pillars of sustainable development (People, Planet and Profit) and could protect the environment (giving the environment and economic value) create decent jobs and generate trade opportunities. They further called for increased support to sustainable tourism activities and relevant capacity building that promote environmental awareness, conserve and protect the environment, respect wildlife, flora, biodiversity, ecosystems and cultural diversity, and improve the welfare and livelihoods of local communities. In addition, the Rio+20 Outcome document noted the importance of Eco-tourism as a sustainable touristic venture that needed more investment by the countries.

For oceans, coastal and marine ecosystems and their associated biodiversity, the Rio+20 deliberations noted the importance of countries working to  ...”advance implementation of the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities, including further capacity-building and mobilization of resources for investment in treatment of human wastes and waste water and to develop a global action plan to combat marine litter and pollution”.  Some of these issues were positively received by the Global Ocean Forum that brought together 375 participants from 46 countries during the Oceans Day celebrations held on the sidelines of Rio+20. In the Global Ocean Forum’s Declaration, the leaders expressed their appreciation for the high level of attention given to oceans, coasts, and SIDS in the Rio+20 Outcome document, and the recognition of their importance in achieving the three pillars of sustainable development.

These twin issues of coastal ecosystems and their marine biodiversity; and sustainable tourism highlighted in the  Rio+20 Outcome Document represent an integral element of the work of UNEP, UNWTO and UNIDO GEF’s COAST Project.

CONCLUSION

For Africa, sustainable Coastal tourism and conservation of coastal marine biodiversity are of critical importance now than ever before, and the global leader’s commitment in the Rio+20 Outcomes only serves to bolster the efforts of most players, like the COAST Project that are working towards this realization. As the global community sets out to confront the challenge of translating the Rio+20 outcomes into tangible achievable and measureable targets, our work in the nine Coastal Countries (Cameroon, Senegal, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Gambia, Ghana, Nigeria and Seychelles) will go a long way in informing the course of the activities in this thematic areas (Eco-Tourism, Environmental Management Systems and Reef and Marine Recreation and Management).

It is important to reiterate here that the COAST Project is in the process of developing, documenting and disseminating important lessons, best practices and technologies in the subject area of coastal tourism. As our experiences from the Demo  Sites mature, we expect to be able to document some useful lessons on governance, management and policy - proposals that we will share with the global community. It is therefore important for the international community to lead the way in facilitating real sustainable development criteria for all sectors. In the days to come, the emerging Best Available Practices and Technologies, experiences and lessons leant from the COAST Project Demo Sites will be documented and disseminated broadly to help towards realization of the global vision as encapsulated in “The Future We Want” Declaration in areas pertaining to coastal ecosystems for Africa, and the rest of the world.

By Geoffrey Omedo,

Knowledge Management and Communications Officer,

COAST Project

There are as many definitions for Knowledge Management as there are organizations, and there is still no consensus yet on the most effective way to define ‘KM’ (a popularly used synonym). While some institutions define KM to be about systems and technologies, others have defined KM to be about people, processes and learning organizations/systems. This complex interplay of organizational features however all have some indication of what KM actually means, but it varies from one organization to the other.

Some UN agencies (UNICEF, UNDP) have defined KM as "an integrated, systematic approach to identifying, managing and sharing an organization’s knowledge, and enabling groups of people to create new knowledge collectively in order to achieve the objectives of the organization". Such a definition tries to broaden the operational scope of KM to include human knowledge (intelligence) inherent within the organization. The Global Environmental Facility (GEF) on its part defines  Knowledge Managements as a ‘ …set of specific actions developed (gathering data, analyzing processes, results and personal experiences, capturing and sharing lessons learned) so that the knowledge of an individual or an institution reaches, in a timely manner, the largest number of people who can benefit from it…’ (GEF KMI 2011).

How is KM applied in different institutions?

Since Knowledge Management is still new and evolving, its definition is still quite ambiguous. However, most institutions have adopted one or more components of what KM is and are applying it to enhance operational efficiency, improved documentation, measurement of results and information sharing. Other institutions have mainstreamed KM into their critical strategy documents to drive corporate ‘turnaround’. For instance, UNIDO’s Knowledge Management Strategy Paper, seeks to apply its KM Strategy as a pathway to transforming the institution from “..a multi-platform, silo-based Knowledge Management environment to a future-proof, single-platform and collaboration-oriented knowledge-based organization.” KM therefore seeks to respond to the different needs and targets of various Organizations/Institutions for improved results.

For instance, private sector institutions value a KM definition/model that could enhance productivity resulting in improved profit margins and general effectiveness. Government institutions could value KM models that result in improved service delivery, accountability and resourcefulness of its citizenry. For development institutions, and in this case the United Nations agencies such as UNIDO, UNEP and UNWTO, knowledge platforms resulting in improved capabilities to drive societal change and spur innovative actions for sustainable development would be more practical and sound.

KM in the context of the COAST Project: What to expect in Project Implementation?

In the context of the COAST Project, and as we move to implement the recommendations of the Mid Term Evaluation, a strategic shift has taken place to adopt a KM Strategy that will focus on capturing and disseminating knowledge, best practices and lessons learned coming out of the COAST project. The Strategy aims to develop and implement appropriate activities to foster a new level of engagement with all coastal tourism stakeholders involved in this project at the local, national and international levels. This Strategy will seek to assist the partner countries to strengthen the integration and impact of the project objectives and activities, as well as to feed key outputs into local, national and international policies and practices.

The lessons learned and best practice case studies, as well as know-how on appropriate processes and concrete recommendations for improving the environment and coastal management will be repackaged into different knowledge management tools. Our KM Strategy will be implemented using an array of knowledge management tools and approaches (i.e. written and visual materials such as Newsletters, fact sheets, exposes and reports etc). These tools and approaches will engage global and country-based media agencies, the respective Ministries of Tourism and Environment in the partner countries, locally-based coastal tourism stakeholders and the communities surrounding the COAST project activities.

The Strategy intends to thereby generate increased public awareness and demand for actions to prevent, and control the degradation of marine and coastal ecosystems from potential pollution and contamination.

Knowledge Management Result Areas for the COAST Project

The COAST Project Knowledge Management Strategy will have four main result areas, as summarized in the table below:

Conclusion

The role of a sound Knowledge Management and Communication Strategy to the COAST Project is now more than ever before of critical importance for sustained delivery. With the four KM themes of Coastal Best Practices and Technologies; Coastal Local Voices; Coastal Environmental Economic Dynamics; and Coastal Policy Change processes, the COAST Project will generate useful products that will inform public discourse in the area of sustainable tourism in Africa and to be able to contribute to the ongoing global dialogue on the same.  It is hoped that the lessons learned and know-how coming out of the COAST Project will be transformed into specific recommendations that have the potential to serve as valuable contributions and inputs to the respective national Tourism and Environment strategies, policies and practices and to future similar project initiatives. In this way, the COAST Project will be able to contribute to policy changes in tourism practices and inspire replications and spin off projects through this KM Strategy.

By Geoffrey Omedo,

Knowledge Management and Communications Officer

Catalysing Ocean Finance demonstrates that, far from being an intractable problem, sustainable ocean management could become a successful legacy of today’s generation of decision-makers. It shows how the challenges facing the ocean stem from widely understood market and policy failures - failures which can be addressed through the application of appropriate mixes of market and policy instruments.

Over the past twenty years, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the GEF have successfully developed a range of strategic planning tools aimed at assisting governments to put in place enabling policy environments to catalyse investment for restoring and protecting the marine environment. In several cases, catalysed public and private financial flows have exceeded the initial GEF investment several hundred times. In some cases, these instruments have helped to shift sizeable ocean industries, such as shipping and tuna fisheries, to a more environmentally sustainable path.

Catalysing Ocean Finance (Volumes I & II) takes stock of how effective these instruments have been in helping countries to address challenges facing the oceans and explore how they could be successfully scaled up. It estimates that an initial public investment – on the order of $5 billion over the next ten to twenty years – could be sufficient to catalyse several hundred billion dollars of public and private invest­ment, and thereby foster global transformation of ocean markets towards sustainability.

For more information on these including the downloading the UNDP's Publication check here

“UNWTO welcomes the adoption of this resolution on the importance of ecotourism,” said the Secretary-General of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Taleb Rifai, in a news release.

“The remarkable support that the resolution has received, from all regions and across the development spectrum, is a clear testimony that sustainable tourism has a vital role to play in a fairer and sustainable future for all,” he added.

The resolution, adopted on 21 December and entitled ‘Promotion of ecotourism for poverty eradication and environment protection,’ calls on UN Member States to adopt policies that promote ecotourism, highlighting its “positive impact on income generation, job creation and education, and thus on the fight against poverty and hunger.”

It further recognizes that “ecotourism creates significant opportunities for the conservation, protection and sustainable use of biodiversity and of natural areas by encouraging local and indigenous communities in host countries and tourists alike to preserve and respect the natural and cultural heritage.”

According to UNWTO, the resolution – facilitated by Morocco and sponsored by a record 105 delegations – draws on the recommendations contained in one of its reports, put together on the basis of responses from 48 Member States, “which, in a notable departure from its normal practice, was welcomed by the UN General Assembly.”

In line with the UNWTO report’s recommendations, the resolution underscores the need for national tourism plans to account for market demand and local competitive advantages.

It also encourages Member States to promote investment in ecotourism, in accordance with their national legislation, including creating small and medium-sized enterprises, promoting cooperatives and facilitating access to finance through inclusive financial services such as microcredit initiatives for the poor, local and indigenous communities, in areas of ecotourism potential and rural areas.

UNWTO added that the resolution builds on a 2010 resolution on the same subject, and reflects developments since then – namely, the inclusion of tourism in the outcome document of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), held in Brazil in mid-2012, and the results of the 11th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biodiversity.

Rio+20 saw world leaders acknowledge the importance of an inclusive, transparent, strengthened and effective multilateral system to better address the urgent global challenges of sustainable development.

Held in the Indian city of Hyderabad, the 11th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biodiversity unveiled a strategy to combat unprecedented levels of biodiversity loss and called for “significant” increases in biodiversity investments in 100 countries – while at the same time aiming to foster economic growth and create jobs in addition to protecting endangered species and habitats.

“The resolution keeps ecotourism clearly on the agenda of the United Nations as it requires UNWTO to submit a follow up report to the sixty-ninth session of the UN General Assembly in 2014,” UNWTO added.

Last year, the UNWTO said that despite global economic uncertainty, international tourism continued to grow in 2012, with the estimated number of tourists travelling that year reaching a record one billion.

Tourism accounted for nine per cent of global gross domestic product when totalling its direct, indirect and induced impact, according to the agency, which also noted that one in every 12 jobs and up to eight per cent of the total exports of the world’s UN-designated Least Developed Countries (LDCs) depend on tourism.

For more information on this check here

“It is very reassuring to learn from this report that an initial public investment on the order of $5 billion over the next 10 to 20 years could be sufficient to catalyze many hundreds of billions of dollars in public and private finance,” said Dr. Naoko Ishii, CEO and Chairperson of the GEF.  “We now have the right tools to identify and remove those market and policy failures which have unfortunately sped up the degradation of marine environments.  Our goal is to help both the public and private sectors create clear incentives and policies which will serve to protect the world’s oceans,” she added.

The world’s oceans and coastal areas are the source of a variety of life-sustaining goods and services—including food, transport, oil and gas, tourism, and minerals.  Marine and coastal resources directly provide at least US$3 trillion annually in global economic output.

“Oceans are an integral part of life on earth, regulating our climate and producing oxygen for the planet, yet they are under serious threat due to pollution, over-exploitation, habitat loss, invasive species, and climate change,” said Andrew Hudson, Head of UNDP’s Water & Ocean Governance Programme. “We need to improve the way we manage the oceans, before the damage is irreversible,” he said, adding that ocean degradation threatens the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people, primarily in the world’s least developed countries.

Catalysing Ocean Finance: Transforming Markets to Restore & Protect the Global Ocean, issued jointly with the GEF, shows that the accelerating degradation of the marine environment stems primarily from market and policy failures, leading to the over-exploitation of fisheries, skyrocketing hypoxic (low oxygen) zones in coastal areas, continued introductions of destructive alien species, and increased ocean acidification.

These market and policy failures have led both the private and public sectors to under-invest in environmental protection measures, such as wastewa­ter treatment and coastal habitat protection, and over-invest in activities detrimental to the marine environment, including over-fishing and chemically intensive agri­culture.

Over the last two decades, UNDP and the GEF have successfully developed a suite of ocean strategic planning tools that have proven successful at creating enabling policy environments to catalyse investment for restoring and protecting the marine environment.

From reversing the Black Sea’s enormous ”dead zone” to reducing the risk from invasive species in ship ballast water, to moving forty percent of the world’s tuna fisheries in the Pacific towards sustainability, Catalysing Ocean Finance documents the tangible impacts of these instruments and approaches.

Using 20 years of UNDP-GEF experience on costs and impacts of ocean protection efforts as proxies, the report estimates the costs of scaling up these tools at a global level to address key ocean threats comprehensively. Catalysing Ocean Finance demonstrates how a modest investment of public finance can scale up proven ocean planning and policy tools, leverage financial flows, transform ocean markets, and reverse the global decline in ocean health.

Both Volumes I and II of Catalysing Ocean Finance can be downloaded at: http://bit.ly/Z2Xbk4

For more information on UNDP’s Oceans programme, please visit:  http://bit.ly/W0FTSO

"This is not a technical manual for engineers, nor a tip sheet for travelers," says co-author David Krantz, "but rather a practical handbook based on existing good practices in use today. It can serve as a basis for development decisions and tourism policy going forward."

Coastal tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors in the tourism industry, both globally and in Mexico. Coast lines and oceans - including mangroves, aquifers, and coral reefs - are being heavily impacted by large-scale tourism-related development. Despite this, the Mexican government’s tourism development agency, FONATUR, continues to build huge all-inclusive resort complexes modeled after Cancun.

"There has been a lot of talk about sustainability in Mexico’s tourism development over the last few years, but the public and private sectors continue to pursue conventional models without meaningful change," says Dr. Martha Honey, CREST Co-Director and co-author of the report. "That's why we put this Framework together – to demonstrate that there is an alternative, and to show what it looks like."

The CREST study also discusses the increasing consumer interest in more socially and environmentally responsive types of tourism. Tourism is one of Mexico’s most important industries, but Mexico's global ranking for tourist arrivals and earnings has fallen over the last decade. The CREST study argues that Mexico can improve its international competitiveness by catering to a more informed and conscientious tourism market. Mexico’s emphasis, the report argues, "should be on high value, not simply high volume tourism."

The research findings, analysis, and recommendations in this report are intended to play a constructive role in helping to foment public discussion, civic engagement, and policy reforms to ensure sustainable development of coastal and marine tourism.

The report is available for download in Spanish and English at www.responsibletravel.org.

About Center for Responsible Travel

Center for Responsible Travel (CREST) is a policy-oriented research institute affiliated with Stanford University. It is committed to using tourism as a tool for poverty reduction and biodiversity conservation. CREST’s network of experts provides interdisciplinary analysis and innovative solutions through consultancies, research and field projects, publications, conferences and courses. Core programs include Coastal and Marine Tourism, Market Research, Travelers’ Philanthropy, Ecotourism, and Certification.

The Gambia has joined the international community to celebrate International Coastal Clean up day. This event is observed on the third Saturday of September each year, and this year it was held recently with special focus areas of the following to:-

1.         Remove debris from water bodies including the coastline and beaches

2.         Collect valuable information about debris and type of waste collected

3.         Increase public awareness on the effects of litter and debris on the aquatic ecosystem.

4.         Make positive changes and to promote waste prevention efforts around the coastal environment.

As part of the activities to mark the event, the National Environment Agency in collaboration with coastal communities, local NGOs, Community Based Organizations’, Civil society, Security Forces and the Local Municipalities had embarked on clean up exercise along the coastline from Banjul ferry terminal to Kartong fish landing site and also at Barra, Bamba Tenda and Yelli Tenda ferry crossing points in North Bank Region.

According to him, the debris in our coastline if not removed, can be harmful and even fatal to all manners of marine wildlife, can damage our country’s economy and even become a human health hazard. The Coastal Cleanup Day is a great way for stakeholders in the coastal zone, families, students, service groups, neighbor to join together, take care of our fragile marine environment, show community support for our shared natural resources, learn about the impacts of marine debris and how we can prevent them, and to have fun.

“The main sources of waste along the Gambia coastline apart from the waste generated from the fish processing at landing sites are mainly from passengers using river transportation system (ferries and boats services), frequent Sunday beach parties along the coastline, uncontrolled waste from hoteliers and runoff water during rainy season carrying waste from land to the coastal areas”, he added.

Usually wastes generated from these sources are not properly controlled and sometimes not regularly collected thereby causing pollution in our coastline and water bodies.

Noting that, cleanliness of our coast and marine ecosystem will contribute to the health of the people and the environment particularly our wetland ecosystem which supports high biodiversity which we all depend on for our daily livelihood. In addition this important clean up exercise has also strengthened the efforts of the Tourism Sector in their preparation for the 2012/2013 tourist season began in October 2012.

This year’s International Coastal Cleanup Day was funded by Collaborative Actions for Sustainable Tourism (COAST) Project.

Mr. Kujabi: highlighted that the COAST Project is a UNEP implemented, Global Environmental Facility (GEF) supported project that is executed by UNIDO in collaboration with UNWTO (UN World Tourism Organization). The project objective is to “demonstrate and support the adoption of best practice approaches for sustainable tourism that reduce the degradation of marine and coastal environments of trans-boundary significance”.

The project approach will provide important lessons on how to sustain an emerging and dynamic tourism sector in Africa, while conserving fragile coastal ecosystems within the context of rapidly changing environments and increased international tourism. The Project has demonstration sites in eight African countries, (The Gambia, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Seychelles, Tanzania, Kenya and Mozambique).

The Gambia Ports Authority had also contributed both financially and manpower in observing the day. The support from GPA had further enhanced NEA in mobilizing resources for a better and adequate participation of the public.

For your comments, suggestions and contributions, please contact (00220) 6361340/7142236 or Email: bajgambia2011@yahoo.com

Author: Abdou Rahman Sallah

This article is availabe here

Without a comprehensive strategy to police, patrol and promote the maritime economy and resources along its 42,000km coastline, Africa loses billions of dollars in revenue annually and leaves itself vulnerable to myriad criminal activities.

“Africa remains the continent that suffers most from illegal and unregulated fishing, maritime terrorism, piracy and armed robbery at sea, poor legal and regulatory maritime regimes, illegal drugs, arms and human trafficking, a lack of effective communication and other technological maritime requirements, and last but not least, unsuitable ships and ports,” Annette Leijenaar, Head of the Conflict Management and Peacebuilding Division at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), a Pretoria-based think tank, said in a recent policy brief titled Africa Should Wake up to the Importance of an Integrated Maritime Strategy.

A meeting on the Africa Integrated Maritime (AIM) strategy was held earlier this month in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa. Leijenaar told IRIN, “It is the right direction, however, action is required through implementable plans that are well coordinated and have the political commitment of African leaders.” The AU will also address management of riverine systems, dams and wetlands.

“Like the rest of the world, more than 90 percent of Africa’s imports and exports are carried by sea. If one includes the illegal market in military arms and logged forest products, Africa has a maritime economy estimated at US$1 trillion a year, representing 90 percent of its overall commerce,” the policy brief said.

Of Africa’s 54 states, 38 are either coastal or island nations. Johan Potgieter, a former captain in the South African navy and senior ISS security sector researcher - referring to neglect of maritime opportunities and risks - told IRIN, “Sea blindness is our [Africa’s] biggest threat.”

No defence

Some 70 percent of the continent’s rapidly growing population - which currently stands at over one billion people - depend on fish, both inland and coastal, for protein, highlighting the importance of policing and managing the continent’s territorial waters.

I said to a politician, don’t look at what it’s going to cost you to run a navy. You need to say, ‘What is it going to cost me to feed this population when there are no more fish?

“I said to a politician, don’t look at what it’s going to cost you to run a navy. You need to say, ‘What is it going to cost me to feed this population when there are no more fish? Where I am going to get the food from?’” Potgieter said.

An October report by the Environmental Justice Foundation, Pirate Fishing Exposed: The Fight Against Illegal Fishing in West Africa and the EU [European Union], observed, “Global losses due to Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) or ‘pirate fishing’ are estimated to be between $10 billion and $23.5 billion per year. West African waters are estimated to have the highest levels of IUU fishing in the world, representing up to 37 percent of the region’s catch.”

Foreign trawlers have been known to illegally haul up hundreds of tons of fish per day for export to Europe, while local fishermen’s catch is typically limited to what they can bring up with 8m-long pirogues.

Anti-piracy operations off the Horn of Africa in 2011 cost an estimated $6.9 billion, or about two-thirds the annual GDP of Madagascar, an island country that has no naval capacity to speak of.

Potgieter said the relative success of anti-piracy operations off East Africa is having a “balloon effect of pushing the pirates further and further away [to], we suspect, the east coast of Madagascar, [which] is fairly unpopulated, and the pirates will find a safe haven there to set up bases.”

Building and maintaining a navy is both a costly and politically fraught exercise. Navies operate out of the sight of the electorate and are easily used by opposition parties in “guns versus butter” debates. Additionally, the procurement of defence systems in Africa has been mired in corruption issues. The price of a naval vessel can start in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and keeping ships on operational duties often requires a compliment of three. The annual running cost for three 80m British Royal Navy patrol vessels is $32 million.

Helmut Heitman, a defence analyst and correspondent for Jane's Defence Weekly, told IRIN that Mozambique does not have a naval capacity. The “Comoros has nothing. On the west coast [of Africa], there is very little.”

Expanding navies

But increasing piracy in the Gulf of Guinea has prompted several countries to acquire patrol vessels in a piecemeal fashion to bolster maritime capacity. Nigeria’s navy has requested the procurement of 49 ships and 42 helicopters over the next decade. Earlier this year, the country commissioned its first locally built 31m patrol craft, the NNS Andoni.

Neighbouring Ghana acquired two former German Navy fast attack crafts in July, after commissioning four new Chinese patrol boats earlier in the year. Namibia brought in a 100m refurbished Chinese patrol vessel earlier this year, adding to a naval compliment that includes harbour and inshore patrol boats.

There is also a growing trend towards aerial reconnaissance over the ocean, especially in West Africa, with Ghana and Nigeria acquiring aircraft for monitoring and addressing piracy.

It’s not just about buying ships. It takes three generations of officers to build up a competent navy

Heitman said, “It’s not just about buying ships. It takes three generations of officers to build up a competent navy. So 30 years [the 2050 AIM goal] is a reasonable timeframe. [However,] a ship without an aircraft is pointless. An aircraft without a ship is also pointless.”

The use of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, is also finding greater currency as an option for policing territorial waters. Potgieter said, “You don’t need a warship to fight a pirate... If you use a drone, you can have 18 to 24 hours of flight time. But it is not necessarily cheap.” The price tags for drones range from hundreds of thousands to tens of millions of dollars.

“But you still have to send a boat out to make the arrest, and this is where the problem starts. If we detect something on the other side of Madagascar - collaboration becomes important - and maybe the French are better suited to help… But we have to start talking to one another,” he said.

Aligning legislation

Developing coastal security is one step toward protecting continental waters. Creating the required legislation for individual AU members states to cooperate on a continental level presents another set of time-consuming complications.

Read more

Shrinking lake threatens livelihoods

Overfishing - culprits and consequences

Fishy business - the cost of illegal trawling

Fishermen on Lake Tanganyika

Coastal erosion

“Maritime security and policing management is an inter-departmental/agency function that is extremely difficult to coordinate and achieve. Among other [issues], it requires good governance, an industrial infrastructure, technological competence, effective information-sharing mechanisms and political commitment. Few African countries, if any, meet these requirements,” the ISS policy brief said.

Leijenaar said developing a domestic maritime strategy involves numerous government departments, from environmental affairs to tourism and defence, and these ministry’s first have to be aligned at a country level, then at a regional level and finally at the continental level.

Each country has to sift through memoranda of understanding and protocols signed by each department and then change conflicting legislation, “a small task that can take five to ten years,” Potgieter said. “Then [to] get it through [each country’s] parliament - some of these things will take you ten years.”

And that’s before countries can begin to address the issue of “hot pursuit” through neighbouring territorial waters. “Most countries will still not allow your ships to go through their waters unless you have permission in advance,” Potgieter said.

“The importance of assuming collective responsibility for Africa's maritime domain is essential - within national governments, regions and Africa,” he said.

go/rz

Theme (s): Governance, Security,

Article available at http://www.irinnews.org/Report/96608/SECURITY-Is-Africa-s-maritime-strategy-all-at-sea;