Guinea Current Large Marine Ecosystem Marine Management and Governance (IWC5 Presentation)

PRE CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS

24th October, 2009

GCLME Marine Management and Governance

Christian Susan Project Manager, UNIDO Water Management Unit

GCLME Project

Guinea Current Large Marine Ecosystem

GCLME Project GCLME Project

16 riparian countries:AngolaBeninCameroonCongoDRCCote d’IvoireGabonGhanaEquatorial GuineaGuineaGuinea BissauLiberiaNigeriaSao Tome and PrincipeSierra LeoneTogo

GCLME Project

GCLME natural resource endowment and threats

• class I highly productive ecosystem (> 300 gC/m-2y-1)

• diverse coastal habitats, lagoons, bays, estuaries and mangrove swamps => high biodiversity, threatened by anthropogenic activities and natural processes

• rich in living marine resources, threatened by over-fishing

• >60% industries and ~ 47% population (300 mio) lives within 200 km of the coast, overexploitation of natural, pressure/destruction on/of habitats

• rich in natural resource endowment (oil, gas, timber, minerals), exploitation has detrimental environmental impacts

GCLME Project

the Riparian Countries

• 4 languages (English, French, Portuguese, Spanish)

• different legal and regulatory frameworks

• large regional socio-economic disparities

• different development paths

GCLME Project

obstacles for sustainable management and joint governance of natural resources

• fragmented data sets, not shared

• lack of national budget

• inadequate regional institutional capacity and human resources

• no regional cooperation

• ill defined property right regimes

=> uncertainty in ecosystem status

GCLME Project

long term development goals

• recover and sustain depleted fisheries

• restore degraded habitats

• reduce land and ship-based sources of pollution

by establishing a regional management framework for sustainable useof living and non living resources

GCLME Project

instruments for sustainable management and joint governance Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis

• joint scientific and technical assessment

• joint identification and quantification of environmental issues and problems

• joint analysis of root causes, environmental and economic impacts, uncertainties

• joint analysis of socio-economic, political and institutional context

GCLME Project

instruments for sustainable management and joint governance Strategic Action Program

• negotiated policy document, ratified by all 16 GCLME countries (2007)

• describes policy, legal and institutional reforms and investments needed to address problems identified in TDA

• measurable and quantifiable performance indicators

GCLME Project

instruments for sustainable management and joint governance

National Action Programs

• to translate the SAP’s political goals into concrete action at national level

• identify concrete actions and commitments

• national baseline and incremental processes and costs

• identify regional and national arrangements for monitoring the environmental status and trends, pressure relief

• each NAP is to be adopted and endorsed by the relevant by-laws to be enacted by each member country

GCLME Project

institutions for sustainable management and joint governance

• Regional Coordination Unit

• Interministerial Committees in each country

• Ministerial Committee

• Regional Activity Centers

• Interim Guinea Current Commission (Abuja Declaration 2006)

• Guinea Current Commission

GCLME Project

tools for sustainable management and joint governance

•standardized monitoring programme

•regional biodiversity strategy

•ecosystem wide stock assessment methodology

•fisheries management plans for transboundary stocks

•economic instruments

• national demonstration projects, regionally disseminated

• ecosystem trend reports

GCLME Project

addressing climate variability

Lagos (Nigeria) and Monrovia (Liberia) are among the top five cities most vulnerable to sea level riseRegional Activity Centre for Risk Assessment in Libreville, Gabon

main tasks in phase II • assess vulnerability of GCLME to impacts due to climatic change • population at risk • economic activities compromised • impacts on habitats, fauna and flora• information dissemination and awareness creation• mitigation

GCLME Project

Poverty Reduction through Productive Activities • Trade Capacity Building • Energy and Environment

merci! gracias!

obrigado! thank you!