Representatives from United Nations (UN) Member States, intergovernmental organizations, and non-government organizations convened for an Ad-Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group (AHWG) to study issues relating to the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity beyond areas of national jurisdiction (BBNJ) last June 16-19, 2014 at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA.
Philippine Council for Agriculture and Fisheries (PCAF) Executive Director Ariel Cayanan was part of the Philippine delegation, together with PCAF Fisheries and Aquaculture Section Chief Sarah Bales, and Philippine Mission to the UN Legal Adviser Atty. Igor Bailen.
The eighth of the nine series of meetings convened by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) to discuss a possible new international instrument on BBNJ under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), it focused on the scope, parameters and feasibility of an international instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of BBNJ initially discussed in the previous meeting in April, which was attended by PCAF Deputy Exec. Dir. Florabelle Uy-Yap and BFAR Assistant Dir. Atty. Benjamin F. S. Tabios, Jr.
During the deliberation of the issues, Dir. Cayanan presented the Philippine position regarding the feasibility of a new instrument, noting that a new instrument on BBNJ would contribute to ensuring predictability in the conduct of states.
He explained that “a negotiation process for an implementing instrument under UNCLOS is feasible primarily because of the compelling reasons to ensure the conservation and sustainable use of BBNJ which are a common natural heritage of mankind.”
The International Institute for Sustainable Development noted that the consultation has been successful in clarifying a series of substantive elements of a new agreement on BBNJ that are considered necessary to prepare recommendations to the UN General Assembly at the next AHWG meeting in January 2015.
During the consultation, the participants agreed to adopt the 2011 package, the package of issues agreed on by the Working Group in 2011, as starting point to address the existing legal, regulatory, and implementation gaps covering the areas of concern of: marine genetic resources, including questions on the sharing of benefits; area-based management tools, including marine protected areas; environmental impact assessments; conservation and management tools (marine science); and technology transfer and capacity building.
Furthermore, they agreed to address the issues and gaps on the fragmentation in governance and management of present and future threats to marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, work within the framework and principles established by the UNCLOS, develop a benefit-sharing regime for marine genetic resources, establish representative marine protected area networks, and assess environmental impacts including cumulative impacts, and take into account modern conservation principles such as ecosystem-based management and the precautionary principle.
The concluding AHWG meeting is scheduled on January 20-23, 2015 in which the PCAF will continue its participation and will submit regular updates on the development of the UN informal consultative meetings regarding oceans and the law of the sea, as well as recommendations relevant to DA participation.
-With reports from International Institute for Sustainable Development Reporting Services.
Source: http://nafc.da.gov.ph/NAFCNEWs/2014/bbmj.html
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