Director-General Nosipho Ngcaba’s opening address on behalf of Minister Edna Molewa at the technical meeting of the 11th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Cooperation for the Protection, Management and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment of the Atlantic Coast of the West, Central and southern African Region (Abidjan Convention), Cape Town Convention Centre, Cape Town
Chairperson of the Bureau of the Abidjan Convention, Republic of Congo, Mr Alexis Minga
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) representative – Jacquelin Alder
Coordinator of the Abidjan Convention, Abou Bamba
Heads of international organisations and our partners
Members of the media
Distinguished delegates
Ladies and gentlemen
I am delighted to welcome you all to South Africa and to the Eleventh Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Convention on Cooperation for the Protection, Management and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment of the Atlantic Coast of the West, Central and Southern African Region (Abidjan Convention COP11). I am especially delighted by the number of Contracting Parties and partner organisations that are attending this important meeting and I believe this demonstrates the level of commitment and interest in the Convention.
The theme of this COP11 Meeting is “Promoting Blue Growth in Africa: Towards Sustainable Management of Marine Resources”. As it is the first time that South Africa is hosting this event, this could not have come at a more opportune time with such an appropriate theme. As African countries we are united and committed to address the myriad of challenges facing our beloved continent – poverty, under development, environmental degradation are but some of these challenges. We have also made tremendous strides in putting in place legislative regimes and national and regional programmes to address these challenges.
I am reminded of the Rio+20 meeting which highlighted the “Green Economy” and the “Blue Economy” within the context of sustainable development. The oceans and coasts around Africa offer enormous potential opportunities - yet untapped potential. It is absolutely crucial that we embrace this paradigm shift to sustainable utilisation of our oceanic resources and ensure that the benefits from economic activities translate into real benefits for our populations – improving their livelihoods. We must place populations located along the West coastal areas at the centre of the debate whilst ensuring that our oceans create opportunities for our people.
Distinguished delegates, I recognise the growing global interest in the concept of the blue economy and oceans as a resource for unlocking such potential. South Africa has taken note of such developments and carried out an analysis of the opportunities presented by our oceans in growing our economy, providing well needed jobs and improving prosperity whilst also ensuring environmental sustainability. We have already identified the following key areas that would be prioritised as potential growth areas, namely Marine transport and manufacturing activities (coastal shipping, transshipment, boat building, repair and refurbishment, etc.), offshore oil and gas exploration, Aquaculture and Marine protection services and ocean governance. The focus on Marine protection services and ocean governance alongside the key growth sectors is an opportunity to improve knowledge and spatial planning alongside regional programmes like the Abidjan sub-regional programmes. This should pave the way to regional agreement for setting environmental standards to reduce the current uncertainty and inconsistencies within the offshore industries. This is a pro-active approach to facilitate informed blue economy into the future.
Africa is rich in natural resources and we need a concerted effort to sustainably utilise these resources for our own economic growth and the benefit of our people by creating jobs. We need concrete implementable action plans with clear deliverables and outcomes within specified timeframes. The Abidjan Convention can be used as an important vehicle to drive the process to economic prosperity.
This Convention, which spans across 22 countries from Mauritania to South Africa covers a wide variety of environmental aspects. I sincerely trust that the expert meeting will deliberate frankly and find solutions on how to take these issues forward. I expect the Expert Report, which will also for the first time, include a report on key scientific and technical matters, will guide the decision-making process. Whilst deliberations will revolve around the implementation of the COP10 decisions, careful consideration needs to be given to new decisions on emerging issues such as ocean governance, Ecological or Biological Significant Areas (EBSAs), and the management of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, amongst others. If we take all the draft decisions to be discussed at this meeting in its totality, this means our collective obligations will increase substantially.
Distinguished delegates let us remind ourselves that we are very much still within the process of revitalising this important Convention. We acknowledge that much effort has already been invested into the updating of the Abidjan Convention text and we are keen to see that the process is finalised. It is crucial that the Convention pave the way for us to tackle more contemporary environmental challenges besetting our region. We therefore need to keep the Convention relevant and up to date with other international initiatives such as the Convention on Biological Diversity, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change amongst others and strengthen linkages with these conventions.
I have no doubt that your deliberations and the finalisation of the new Programme of Work Plan for 2015/16 will yield concrete actions that are measurable. I wish you well in your deliberations and I look forward to the report from the Expert Segment.
I hereby, on behalf of the South African government, declare the Expert Meeting of the 11th Conference of the Parties to the Abidjan Convention officially open.
I thank you.
