Declaration On Coral Preservation Issued During Coral Triangle Meeting

Jakarta, Nov 27 (ANTARA) - During the Fourth Coral Triangle Initiative - Coral Reefs Fisheries and Food Security (CTI-CFF) Ministerial Meeting (MM4), held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from November 22 to 26, 2012, a declaration on coral preservation was issued. The Declaration is known as the Putrajaya CTI Joint-Ministerial Statement 2012, which aims to strengthen the commitment of its members in preserving corals in the Asia Pacific region, said Gellwynn Jusuf, secretary general of the Indonesian maritime affairs and fisheries ministry, on Monday. The declaration guides the CTI-CFF in achieving its objectives and aspirations. During the meeting, the members agreed that a permanent Secretariat of the CTI-CFF will be set up in Manado, North Sulawesi (Indonesia), and it will be operational by 2013. Indonesia`s proposal to designate June 9 as the CTI Day was also accepted during the meeting. In addition, the members agreed on the establishment of common regional funds. Indonesia has committed to adopt the Blue Economy concept in managing the maritime and coastal resources in a sustainable manner by ensuring there is a balance between economic development and the environmental threshold. The Blue Economy concept aims to preserve the biodiversity in the Coral Triangle region, he stated. The CTI-CFF principles also complement the Blue Economy concept by emphasising biodiversity conservation, he added. Two CTI programs that have been implemented in Indonesia are: Marine Protected Areas Governance (MPAG) and the Indonesia Marine and Climate Support (IMACS). Besides, the government aims to increase the coverage of maritime conservation area to 20 million hectares by 2020. The Fourth Ministerial meeting was attended by the Indonesian Minister for Marine Affairs and Fisheries, Sharif Cicip Sutardjo, Malaysia`s Science, Technology and Innovation Minister (MOSTI), Datuk Seri Panglima Dr Maximus Johnity Ongkili, the Minister For Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology of Solomon Islands, Bradley Tovosia, the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries of Timor Leste, Mariano Assanami Sabino, the Undersecretary for Staff Bureaus of the Filipino Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Attorney Ernesto D. Adobo Jr., Papua New Guinea�s High Commissioner to Malaysia, Veali Vagi, the Secretary of Australia`s Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, Paul Grimes and USAID/RDMA Deputy Director for the Regional Environment Office, Juniper Neill. The CTI-CFF was formed to address critical threats to coastal and marine resources in one of the most biologically diverse and ecologically rich regions on this planet. The Coral Triangle is home to 76% of all known coral species, 53% of the world�s coral reefs and 37% of all known coral reef fish species. It also has the largest area of mangrove forests in the world, and it is home to tuna and other commercial fish species. The CTI-CFF complements the objectives of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), particularly on environmental sustainability, and it reaffirms the principles of sustainable development adopted in the Rio Earth Summit. Representatives from several development partners attended the meeting as observers: the Australian Government, the Government of the United States of America through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and several NGOs such as Conservation International (CI), The Nature Conservation (TNC), WWF International and WWF Malaysia.