UAE Minister of Environment & Water inaugurates regional marine conservation forum

The Forum is being held under the patronage of the UAE Ministry of Environment & Water at the Crowne Plaza Abu Dhabi, 11th - 14th September, 2006 and is organized by EWS - WWF (Emirates Wildlife Society - World Wide Fund for Nature). The participants at the Forum include over 80 experts including biologists, conservationists, researchers and government officials from the region.

Delivering the inaugural address at the Forum, Dr. Kindi said: "During the last three decades the Arab gulf region has witnessed tremendous changes that have affected all aspects of life. Although these changes have achieved many positive results, they have at the same time, created an increasing pressure on environmental resources and wildlife".

Noting that oil exploration, desalination and other developmental activities in the Gulf had led to negative effects on the marine environment, Dr. Kindi added that the conduct of this Forum was a step toward developing a sustainable strategy for the protection of marine life especially coral reefs and marine turtles.

Remarking that environmental protection was the corner stone of the UAE's development policies, Dr. Kindi said: "Care for the environment has increased and the UAE has achieved visible success and established itself among prominent countries working for the protection of the environment".

His Excellency Mohammed Ahmed Al Bowardi, Secretary-General of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council and Chairman of Emirates Wildlife noted that a significant evolution had occurred in the role of environmental NGOs.

"Federal as well as state governments are increasingly open to tackling vital environmental issues in conjunction with the private sector, NGOs and with the involvement of the civil society. NGOs are able to work in a more collaborative and effective way with the government sector and I believe that the conduct of this event and its scale also reflects the urgent need for a cohesive, collaborative effort in tackling the key issue of marine conservation in the region,"

he said.

Dr. Susan Lieberman, Director of the WWF-International Species Programme and a key facilitator at the Forum said "The conservation of the Arabian Gulf's coral reef habitat and species requires regional cooperation and shared research".

According to Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, Director of EWS-WWF: "The first two days of the Forum 2006 will be dedicated to coral reef conservation followed by two days of presentations focused on turtle protection. Areas of discussion over the four days will include habitats, legal aspects, management, protected areas, population assessment, threat assessments and mitigation strategies. Local conservation efforts in each participating country will be reviewed and best practices assimilated into a Regional Conservation Action Plan.