Migratory species highlighted in Havana

03-Sep-2003: By GUY ROGERS at the 6th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in Cuba, Havana

AN IMPORTANT agreement signed yesterday between the UNCCD and an international migratory species’ protection body has added a new dimension to the debate here in Havana.

Issued yesterday amid a whelter of puffery and political position taking from the Heads of State round table, the deal also sent out a timely reminder of the environmental issues framing this conference.

The agreement calls for better “coherance” between the host body and the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), the elimination of duplication and the development of specific targets around dryland and degraded habitats.

Representatives will now participate in each other’s meetings to exchange issues of mutual interest. Also, key to the agreement, the UNCCD secretariat must call on its member states to integrate the concerns of migratory species into their action programmes and consult with the CMS on management of critical areas.

UNCCD executive secretary Hama Diallo said the agreement would help to preserve fragile ecosystems and the livelihoods of the communities that depended on them.

Echoing this view, CMS executive secretary Arnulf Muller-Helmbrecht said the agreement was a milestone for synergy on environment and development.

“Ëfforts to combat desertification, erosion and drought will provide a better life for people and should include wildlife conservation and restoration. Desert and steppe plants and animals are integral to the landscape. They are adapted to the climate and when conserved and sustainably used they have the potential to provide local communities with a means to reach their development goals.”

Established in 1983, CMS has 84 member states and its work revolves around eight international species and area focal points including bats in Europe, whales and dolphins in the Meditteranean and Black seas, and African-Eurasian waterbirds. South Africa is a signatory to this last agreement and hosted the first meeting of the co-operating parties in 1999. A major theme of the waterbirds’agreement is the establishment of trans-boundary “flyways” and an international network of protected wetlands critical to the birds’ survival.

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