News

Opening Remarks: Regional Workshop for South, Southeast and East Asian on Capacity Building for NBSAPs and Mainstreaming Biodiversity and Signing of the MOC between ACB and SCBD
14 January 2008, Singapore Botanic Gardens, Singapore

Today marks three milestones in our concerted efforts to conserve and protect Asia’s dwindling biodiversity resources – the signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation between the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, or SCBD and the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity, or ACB; the Regional Workshop for South, Southeast and East Asia on Capacity Building for National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans and Mainstreaming Biodiversity; and the Meeting of the ACB Governing Board.

ACB and SCBD are joining forces to strengthen the capacity of ASEAN Member Countries to comply with their commitments to the international Convention on Biological Diversity. The signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation between the two international bodies comes at a propitious time as ASEAN countries prepare to meet their commitments to the 2010 Global Biodiversity challenge. Under the agreement, SCBD and ACB are defining areas of collaboration: biodiversity research, capacity building and training, public education and awareness, exchange of information, policy development and coordination, and technical and scientific cooperation for the conservation and sustainable development of biodiversity in Southeast Asia. Most of all, the agreement will help strengthen ASEAN efforts on policy articulation that integrates biodiversity with development concerns, particularly poverty reduction.

With this agreement, ACB is now in a good position to support countries meet their commitment to the Global Biodiversity challenge -- the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, and the fair and equitable sharing of its benefits.

This morning, let me welcome our distinguished policy makers and experts from South, Southeast and East Asian countries who are participating in this workshop that aims to further enhance the capacity countries on biodiversity strategies and action planning and mainstreaming biodiversity. We hope that you will take full advantage of this gathering to exchange experiences and lessons learned, and identify ways and means of overcoming challenges in the development and implementation of national biodiversity strategies and action plans.

This afternoon, the Governing Board of ACB is meeting to help the Centre chart its directions this year and beyond. We hope to further strengthen the role of ACB as an international institution established by the Governments of ASEAN Member Countries to create, promote, and develop links with the public and private sector, civil society, international development institutions, and donor community for the sustainable use of biodiversity in the ASEAN region.

Lastly, I would like to thank the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Government of Singapore, and all participants in the workshop. I hope that the three milestones we are having today will keep the fire of our enthusiasm burning. After all, we only have one goal - to make our world a better place to live in, through biodiversity conservation.

My best wishes and good day to all.