NAIROBI CONVENTION: The Convention for the Protection, Management and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment of the Western Indian Ocean Nairobi Convention a) Legal framework that has mandate to Foster regional cooperation in the protection, management and development of the coastal and Marine environment. b) To serve as a platform for the implementation of GLOBAL MEAs and IMPLEMENT global programmes AND REGIONAL PROJECTS Dixon Waruinge Coordinator Nairobi Conventions) Division of Environmental Policy Implementation (DEPI) UNEP, UN Gigiri Complex P.O. Box 30552 Nairobi, Kenya dixon.waruinge@unep.org Mandate ABNJ; why we are concerned ABNJ; Existing governance structures Opportunities for managing resources in ABNJ
Nairobi Convention The WIO Region a RSP
WIO-: why we should be concerned of ABNJ in WIO- globally? Nairobi Convention The Western Indian Ocean (WIO) generates about 5 % of the global industrialized fish catch, about 4 million tonnes of fish per year. 11,257 marine species are recorded from the WIO - about 13% ARE endemic to the WIO ; 2,200 species of fish found in the WIO represents some 83 % of all the fish families known 65 million people live within 10 km of the
Nairobi Convention Over 40 EBSA Identified for WIO Region+ over 900 sea mounts
The issues Nairobi Convention fish and fish products has increased significantly, from 0.861 million tonnes in 1950 to 11.2 million tonnes in 2010, The ecological impacts of trawling are un documented There is limited understanding of of trophic interactions; including predator removal ; and the linkage of pelagic fisheries with environmental health vulnerability of deep-sea fish stocks to overexploitation and of deep-sea habitats to physical damage un documented
EEZs OF WIO COUNTRIES Not all the countries have agreed on the EEZs boundaries. Nairobi Convention a) Over exploitation and lack of adequate and reliable data to support management of trans-boundary resources b) Inadequate monitoring, control and surveillance beyond Territorial waters and Lack of Regional Management Strategy for ecosystem based Management c) Un documented or limited understanding of the linkages between Fisheries and Biodiversity at a regional scale across the region
Nairobi Convention Regional governance bodies
Nairobi Convention The Dualism ; sovereign rights +Freedom of access = Challenges for ABNJ governance
Nairobi Convention RECS SADC EAC; COMESA Coordination within and among existing regional bodies Adaptive management framework able to Coordinate and integrate science and policy within all the governance bodies is in a coherent way
Other Collaborative Options for Management of ABNJ Nairobi Convention a) The Southern Indian Ocean (SIO) Biodiversity Initiative -( IUCN lead) b) The Western Indian Ocean Coastal challenge (WIO CC GLISPA and Seychelles) c) WIO-C;The Consortium for the Conservation of Coastal and Marine Ecosystems in the Western Indian Ocean (WIO C) -NGOs joint programming. GEF FAO-UNEP project filling the gap Sustainable fisheries management and biodiversity conservation of deep-sea living marine resources and ecosystems in the Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction.
MOVING FORWARD Nairobi Convention Scientific Gaps Filling the Scientific gap, - relatively only a few scientific cruises in Indian Ocean have been conducted; plus connectivity maps Opportunities Description of EBSAs/seamounts should be a continuous process Future consideration Encourage greater coordination and integration of relevant regional bodies e.g the Nairobi Convention, SWIOFC, IOTC to explore the feasibility and appropriateness of expanding their existing mandates so as to address ecosystem management in the ABNJ more coherently.
Nairobi Convention THANK YOU Please visit www.unep.org/nairobiconvention