Headlines:
Major
intergovernmental agreements and actors
Action
programmes, strategies, and research
State
of the regional environment
GEF
Projects
in the region
Other
actors and initiatives
Major
intergovernmental agreements and actors
UN Economic and Social Commission
for Asia and the Pacific, ESCAP
Within
the Water Resources
Programme under its Environment and Natural Resources Development
Division, the UN ESCAP organizes seminars and workshops on various issues
relating to water resources, including: Water resources assessment; Integrated
water resources development and management; Protection of water resources,
water quality and aquatic ecosystems; River basin development and management;
Promotion of infrastructure development and investment for drinking water
supply and sanitation; Water pricing and promotion of private investment
in the water sector; Water demand management, water saving and economic
use of water; and Mitigation of water-related natural disasters, particularly
flood loss reduction.
Association
of Southeast Asian Nations,
ASEAN
ASEAN was
established in 1967 and has ten member countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia,
Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam.
The ASEAN Declaration states that the aims and purposes of the Association
are: to accelerate the economic growth, social progress and cultural development
in the region through joint endeavours in the spirit of equality and partnership
in order to strengthen the foundation for a prosperous and peaceful community
of Southeast Asian nations, and to promote regional peace and stability
through abiding respect for justice and the rule of law in the relationship
among countries in the region and adherence to the principles of the United
Nations Charter. In 1995, the ASEAN Heads of States and Government re-affirmed
that "Cooperative peace and shared prosperity shall be the fundamental
goals of ASEAN." See also
UNEP
Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific,
ROAP
Working closely with the Division of Regional Co-operation and Representation
in UNEP's Nairobi-based headquarters, the Regional Office for Asia and
the Pacific (ROAP) looks to adopt global environmental policy to regional
priorities and needs. It acts as a catalyst, co-ordinator, facilitater
and mobilizer of resources. It puts particular emphasis on building
partnerships with regional and sub-regional intergovernmental fora,
other UN agencies, national governments, NGOs, the private sector, academic
and research institutions, and civil society, and the media. See also
here.
East
Asian Seas Regional Coordinating Unit
Information on the UNEP East Asian Seas Programme can be found on the
web site of the Coordinating Unit, which is located with ROAP. The Unit
is the co-ordinating body for the East Asian Seas Action Plan (see
below).
Financial
institutions
Asian
Development Bank, ADB
The Asian Development Bank, a multilateral development finance institution,
was founded in 1966 by 31 member governments to promote the social and
economic progress of the Asia-Pacific region. It now has 58 member countries
- 42 from within the region and 16 non-regional. ADB gives special attention
to the needs of the smaller or less-developed countries, and to regional,
subregional, and national projects and programs. Promoting sustainable
development and environmental protection is a key strategic development
objective of the Bank. (See also about environment.)
To fulfill this objective, the Bank (i) reviews the environmental impacts
of its projects, programs, and policies; (ii) encourages DMC governments
and executing agencies to incorporate environmental protection measures
in their project design and implementation procedures, and provides technical
assistance for this purpose; (iii) promotes projects and programs that
will protect, rehabilitate, and enhance the environment and the quality
of life; and (iv) trains Bank and DMC staff in, and provides documentation
on, environmental aspects of economic development. The Asian
Development Fund (ADF) is the concessional lending window of the Bank.
Action
programmes, strategies and research
Strategic
Action Programme for the South China Sea
The
Strategic Action plan is based on the findings of the Transboundary Diagnostic
Analysis for the South China Sea (see below).
The actions proposed are wide-ranging in both context and areas of action.
Targets for environmental quality are proposed with regard to habitats
(mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass, estuaries and wetlands), fisheries
management, and land-based pollution.
ASEAN
Strategic Plan of Action on the Environment
The Strategic Plan of Action on the Environment for 1994-1998 has the
following five objectives:
-
to
respond to specific recommendations of Agenda 21 requiring priority
action in ASEAN;
-
to introduce policy measures and promote institutional development
that encourage the integration of environmental factors in all developmental
processes both at the national and regional levels;
-
to
establish long term goals on environmental quality and work towards
harmonised environmental quality standards for the ASEAN region;
-
to
harmonise policy directions and enhance operational and technical
cooperation on environmental matters, and undertake joint actions
to address common environmental problems; and
-
to
study the implications of AFTA on the environment and take steps to
integrate sound trade policies with sound environmental policies.
Despite
the impacts of the recent economic crisis on the natural resources
and environmental conditions, the ASEAN Environment Ministers at
their Fifth Informal Meeting in April 2000 discussed the importance
of keeping their commitment to environmental protection and sustainable
development. Hence, to move forward towards the future goals and
directions that the ASEAN leaders expressed in ASEAN Vision 2020
and the Hanoi Plan of Action (adopted in 1997 and 1998 respectively)
the Ministers adopted the ASEAN
Strategic Plan of Action on the Environment (SPAE) for 1999-2004.
It consists of the key activities to be implemented by ASOEN (ASEAN
Senior Officials on the Environment) and its subsidiary bodies over
the next five years, including the areas of coastal and marine environment,
nature conservation and biodiversity, multilateral environmental
agreements, management of land and forest fires and haze, and other
environmental activities.
Partnership
in Environmental Management for for the Seas of East Asia,
PEMSEA
A GEF project, focusing on "building partnerships within and
among governments of the region, as well as across public and private
sectors of the economy. The goal is to reduce or remove barriers
to effective environmental management, including inadequate or inappropriate
policies, disparate institutional and technical capabilities and
limited investment in environmental facilities and services".
PEMSEA is "based on two management frameworks developed and
tested in an earlier GEF Project: Integrated coastal management,
addressing land-water interactions and the impacts of human activity
in coastal areas; and risk assessment/risk management, applying
to subregional sea areas and the impacts of human activities on
marine ecosystems." PEMSEA web resources include Virtual
ICM; a Legal Information
Database Reference Catalogue; and a Directory
of Research and Management Institutions in Southeast Asia. and
a database of Good
Practices. See also the PEMSEA
Updates, a free online newsletter.
UNEP
Regional Seas Programme
.The
Regional Seas Programme was initiated in 1974 as a global programme
implemented through regional components. The Regional Seas Programme
is UNEP's main framework in the field of the coastal and marine
environment. It includes 14 regions and three partner seas, involves
more than 140 coastal states, and focuses on sustainable development
of coastal and marine areas. Each regional action
plan is formulated according to the needs and priorities of
the region as perceived by the Governments concerned. Regional
conventions are in place for several areas. See a map
of all regional seas, and go to more information on the Black Sea,
Wider Caribbean, Mediterranean,
East Asian Seas, South Asian Seas, Eastern Africa, Kuwait Region,
North West Pacific, Red Sea And Gulf of Aden, South East Pacific,
North East Pacific, South
Pacific, Upper
South West Atlantic, and West
and Central Africa. The UNEP Regional Seas web site also contains
information on What's
at stake, Major
threats, and Actions.
East
Asian Seas Action Plan
On the initiative of the five States of the East Asian region
— Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand
— the Governing Council of UNEP in 1977 decided that "steps
are urgently needed to formulate and establish a scientific programme
involving research, prevention and control of marine pollution and
monitoring " for a regional action plan in East Asia. An Action
Plan for the Protection and Sustainable Development of the Marine
Environment and Coastal Areas of the East Asian Region was adopted
in 1981, with a decision making body, the Coordinating Body on the
Seas of East Asia (COBSEA). A revised Action Plan and a Long-term
Strategy for the COBSEA for the 1994-2000 period were developed
in 1994 and Australia, Cambodia, China, Korea and Vietnam joined
the Action Plan. A new East Asian Seas Action Plan — "Leading
the EAS Action Plan to the 21st Century" — has
been elaborated for the period 2000-2009.
State
of the regional environment
Transboundary
Diagnostic Analysis for the South China Sea
The
TDA for the South China Sea and its associated catchment areas was
a process that focused on identifying water-related problems and
concerns, their socio-economic root causes, and the sectoral implications
of actions needed to mitigate them. The chapter on State of the
Environment covers modification of habitats, overexploitation of
living aquatic resources, and pollution of aquatic environments.
(pdf file)
GEO
2000 State of the Environment: Asia and the Pacific
Global
Enviroment Outlook 2000. GEO is:
-
a global environmental assessment process, the GEO Process,
that is cross-sectoral and participatory. It incorporates regional
views and perceptions, and builds consensus on priority issues
and actions through dialogue among policy-makers and scientists
at regional and global levels.
- GEO
outputs, in printed and electronic formats, including the GEO
Report series. This series makes periodic reviews of the state
of the world's environment, and provides guidance for decision-making
processes such as the formulation of environmental policies,
action planning and resource allocation. Other outputs include
technical reports, a
web site and a publication for young people.
GEF
Projects in the region
Projects
under implementation
UNDP
- GEF - International waters:
Building
Partnerships for the Environmental Protection and Management of
the East Asian Seas
The objective of the project is to assist the riparian countries
of the East Asian Seas to collectively protect and manage their
heavily stressed coastal and marine environments through intergovernmental
and intersectoral partnerships. These countries include the Republic
of Korea which for the first time is a GEF recipient. Building upon
the methodologies, approaches, typologies, networks and lessons
learned from the pilot phase, the project would enhance and complement
national and international efforts by removing or lowering critical
barriers regarding policy, investment, capacity, which are having
negative effects on the management of the coastal/marine environment
in the region. Together with several waterbody-based projects in
the area, these projects constitute GEF's programmatic approach
to these coastal and marine waters with globally significant ecosystems
that are experiencing severe degradation.
UNDP
- GEF - International waters:
Prevention
and Management of Marine Pollution in the East Asian Seas
Development of policies and plans to control marine pollution from
land-based and sea- based sources, upgrading of national and regional
infrastructures and technical skills, and establishment of financing
instruments for project sustainability. Project will include selection
of demonstration sites, establishment of regional monitoring and
information network, and involvement of regional association of
marine legal experts to improve capacity to implement relevant conventions.
UNEP
- GEF - International waters:
Reversing
Degradation Trends in the South China Sea
Major outcomes will include an approved Strategic Action Programme
that will include, a targeted and costed programme of action and
a recommended legal framework for improved regional co-operation
in the management of the environment of the South China Sea; a series
of national and regional management plans for specific habitats
and issues; 9 demonstration management activities at priority transboundary
sites; a regional management plan for maintenance of transboundary
fish stocks; pilot activities relating to alternative remedial actions
to address priority pollutants and adopted water quality objectives
and standards. Activities include national level analyses and reviews
and management of demonstration activities and regional harmonisation
and co-ordination of national level actions.
World
Bank - GEF - Biodiversity:
Hon
Mun Marine Protected Area Pilot Project, Vietnam
This project will support the conservation of critical marine biodiversity
values at Hon Mun island and its surrounding waters, located off
Nha Trang in Khanh Hoa Province, south-central Vietnam. This will
be achieved through the development of a zoned, multiple-use marine
protected area (MPA) that protects globally important examples of
Vietnam's best remaining coral reef, mangrove and seagrass ecosystems.
This project will establish Hon Mun as an MPA pilot site, developing
methodologies for MPA establishment and management that can be replicated
in other areas as part of a national MPA system.
Project
concepts in the pipeline
UNEP
- GEF - International waters:
Formulation
of a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis and Preliminary Framework
of a Strategic Action Programme for the South China Sea
The primary objective of this project is to undertake an extensive
transboundary diagnostic analysis for the South China Sea and the
watershed draining into it. The transboundary diagnostic analysis
will form the basis for formulating a framework for a SAP.
UNDP
- GEF - Biodiversity/International waters:
Biodiversity
Management in the Coastal Area of China's South Sea
The project aims at protecting globally significant marine and coastal
biodiversity along China's sub-tropical and tropical southeast.
Other
actors, initiatives and resources
International
Centre for Living Aquatic Resources Management,
ICLARM
An international research organization "devoted
to improving the productivity, management and conservation of aquatic
resources for the benefit of users and consumers in developing countries".
ICLARM is one of the research centres of CGIAR,
Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research. ICLARM,
in collaboration with the the Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations (FAO) and other partners, and with support
from the European Commission, has developed
FishBase, a global
information system on fishes for research scientists, fisheries
managers, zoologists and many more. FishBase contains full information
on 23,500 species. ICLARM has also developed similar systems on
coral reefs and their resources (ReefBase)
and management of fish stocks in Asia (TrawlBase).
International
Coral Reef Initiative, ICRI
An
environmental partnership that brings stakeholders together with
the objective of sustainable use and conservation of coral reefs
for future generations. ICRI is an informal mechanism that allows
representatives of over 80 developing countries with coral reefs
to sit in equal partnership with major donor countries and development
banks, international environmental and development agencies, scientific
associations, the private sector and NGOs to decide on the best
strategies to conserve the world's coral reef resources.
Coral
Health and Monitoring Programme,
NOOA
The mission of the NOOA Coral Health and Monitoring Program is to
provide services to help improve and sustain coral reef health throughout
the world. Long term goals:Establish an international network of
coral reef researchers for the purpose of sharing knowledge and
information on coral health and monitoring.Provide near real-time
data products derived from satellite images and monitoring stations
at coral reef areas. Provide a data repository for historical data
collected from coral reef areas. Add to the general fund of coral
reef knowledge.See also Global
Coral Reef Monitoring Network, GCRMN.
The
South China Sea - a Large Marine Ecosystem (LME)
A
Large Marine Ecosystem,
LME,
is a "region of ocean space encompassing coastal areas from
river basins and estuaries to the seaward boundary of continental
shelves and the seaward margins of coastal current systems. It is
a relatively large region characterized by distinct bathymetry,
hydrography, productivity, and trophically dependent populations."
See also Rhode Island University map
of LMEs.
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