comunicato UNEP sulla CITES

["AlessandroGimona"<agimona at libero.it>]

I membri della CITES si sono accordati su un piano strategico di 5 anni 
che rafforza la collaborazione e le interazioni tra CITES e convenzione 
sulla Biodiversita'.
Dettagli sotto. 


Spero interessi
Alessandro Gimona


UNEP News Release
For information only
Not an official record


CITES echoes UNEP call for synergies amongst conventions
NAIROBI, 17 April 2000 - The 151 member governments of the Convention on 
International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) have agreed on a 
five-year strategic plan during their meeting here at UNEP headquarters 
that focuses on strengthening collaboration with other conventions and 
organizations dealing with conservation and biodiversity.
"CITES provides a practical and effective system for promoting the 
conservation and sustainable trade of some 30,000 at-risk species," said 
Klaus Toepfer, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment 
Programme (UNEP), which administers the CITES secretariat.  "Many of 
these species are threatened not just by trade but by the destruction of 
their habitat and ecosystems, as well as by pollution, climate change, 
and other stresses. CITES clearly recognizes that its goals can be best 
achieved by cooperating closely with international efforts to address 
related aspects of biological diversity," he said.
To avoid overlap and even conflict, and to strengthen international 
action, UNEP is actively promoting the coordination of policies and 
actions, particularly amongst the various biodiversity-related 
conventions. Opportunities for synergies also exist in areas of 
scientific and technical work, project development and implementation, 
compliance and enforcement, capacity building, awareness raising, 
training, fundraising, and relations with the World Trade Organization.
CITES' strategic plan and related decisions therefore emphasize the 
importance of enhancing synergies between CITES and the Convention on 
Biological Diversity, which is also administered by UNEP. This latter 
agreement
ES, in 1992, provides an 
overarching framework for addressing the global biodiversity crisis. The 
Convention on Biological Diversity will hold its next major conference 
at UNEP headquarters in Nairobi from 15 - 26 May.
Other key CITES partners active in biodiversity policy-making include 
the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, the Bonn Convention on Migratory 
Species, the World Heritage Convention, the Convention to Combat 
Desertification, the 14 Regional Seas conventions and action plans, and 
UNEP. Also, organizations such as UNEP's World Conservation Monitoring 
Centre (WCMC) offer a wealth of scientific and technical information and 
research capacity.
Based in Cambridge, UK, WCMC provides information services on 
conservation and sustainable use of the world's living resources, and 
helps others to develop information systems of their own. Its programmes 
concentrate on species, forests, protected areas, marine and 
freshwaters; plus habitats affected by climate change such as polar 
regions. It also addresses the relationship between trade and the 
environment and the wider aspects of biodiversity assessment.
The strategic goal of CITES is to ensure that no wild animal or plant 
species is unsustainably exploited because of international trade. 
Governments increasingly recognize that sustainable trade can contribute 
to the broader and mutually compatible goals of sustainable development 
and biodiversity conservation. In addition to maintaining and 
strengthening its trade regime, CITES will therefore strengthen its 
efforts to promote management practices such as ranching and 
revenue-sharing incentives for local communities. 
The strategic plan also calls for enhancing the ability of member 
governments to formulate policies and strengthen institutions and 
enforcement measures in order to reduce the need for protecting species 
through trade controls. It further seeks to strengthen the scientific 
basis of decision-making, obtain global membership, improve the 
Conventio
d ultimately 
eliminate illegal trade, promote greater understanding of CITES by the 
public, and strengthen the involvement of non-governmental organizations 
(NGOs), trade associations, scientists, the media, and local 
communities.
To promote synergies in practice, CITES has identified 10 policy areas 
and likely partners for each area:
· Scientific and technical coordination, project development and 
implementation.  Proposed partners: WCMC, UNEP regional offices1, IUCN 
and IUCN regional offices, regional groups under IUCN Wise Use 
Initiative.
· Compliance control. Proposed partners: TRAFFIC, NGOs.
· Enforcement. Proposed partners: WCO, ICPO-Interpol, TRAFFIC, NGOs.
· Capacity building. Proposed partners: WCMC, UNEP regional offices.
· Training. Proposed partners: WCO, ICPO-Interpol, NGOs, UNEP regional 
offices, IUCN Regional offices, UNITAR.
· Awareness. Proposed partners: UNEP regional offices, NGOs.
· Fundraising. Proposed partners: GEF and other major donors, NGOs, 
IUCN.
· Regionalization. UNEP regional offices, IUCN regional offices, TRAFFIC 
networks, regional groups under IUCN Wise Use Initiative.
· Global membership of the Convention. Proposed partners: UNEP regional 
offices, IUCN regional offices, TRAFFIC networks, regional groups under 
IUCN Wise Use Initiative.
· Coordinate relevant policy decisions with other international 
agreements. Proposed partners: WTO, UNCLOS, WCO, other relevant 
agreements, treaties and conventions (e.g. IWC, ITTO, ICCAT).

Note:  1 Where UNEP regional offices are mentioned, the Secretariats of 
Regional Seas Conventions and Action Plans also have a potential role to 
play.

For further information, contact: Michael Williams in Nairobi on 
+254-2-623196, e-mail: michael.williams at unep.ch, Tore J. Brevik, UNEP 
Spokesman, on 623292, email: tore.brevik at unep.org, or Robert Bisset on 
623084, fax: 623692, email: 
robert.bisset at unep.org
Official documents for the CITES meeting, which ends here Thursday, the 
Convention itself, and the 
d on the Internet at www.cites.org.
UNEP News Release 00/41