15th Senior Officials Meeting of Coral Triangle Initiative puts spotlight on Regional Plan of Action Version 2.0

Press Release

15th Senior Officials Meeting of Coral Triangle Initiative puts spotlight on Regional Plan of Action Version 2.0

8th November 2019, Honiara, Solomon Islands – The environment, fisheries, and marine senior officials of the Coral Triangle (CT) member countries – Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste – gathered together in the 15th Senior Officials Meeting in Honiara, Solomon Islands on 7th–8th November 2019. One of the significant items discussed was the draft redesigned Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF) Regional Plan of Action (RPOA) Version 2.0, which sets goals for 2025 and 2030.

The CTI-CFF developed its first RPOA covering 2009–2020. The first RPOA has five goals, namely:

1. Priority seascapes designated and effectively managed;
2. Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM) and other marine resources fully applied;
3. Marine Protected Areas (MPA) established and effectively managed;
4. Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) measures achieved; and
5. Threatened species status improving.

The RPOA sets the foundation for CTI-CFF’s long-term vision and goals to protect the socio-economic and environmental assets of the Coral Triangle region — the global epicenter of marine life, abundance, and biodiversity.

In the draft RPOA 2.0, the CTI-CFF envisions that coastal communities and coastal marine ecosystems will be able to cope with the impacts of climate change in the Coral Triangle region by 2025. Furthermore, CTI envisions these communities and ecosystems to be resilient and able to adapt to climate change impacts, as reflected in the improvement of food security, sustainable fisheries, and coastal livelihoods by 2030.

Outgoing Interim Executive Director of the CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat, Dr. Hendra Yusran Siry, stated that the CTI-CFF shall build on its successes from the past 10 years and will continue to collaborate with its strategic partners and other stakeholders to ensure protection and conservation of marine and coastal ecosystem resources in the Coral Triangle region. Economic, policy, and legal reforms shall be undertaken to integrate marine conservation and management into sustainable development, he added.

The draft RPOA 2.0 proposes to focus on two flagship programs, namely the CT Marine Protected Areas System (CTMPAS) and the Sustainable Coastal Fisheries and Poverty Reduction Initiative (COASTFISH), both designed to apply an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM). The CTMPAS envisions a network of MPAs that are connected, resilient, and sustainably financed.

The need for RPOA 2.0 arose from a completed review by independent experts assessing the effectiveness of the 10-year RPOA in terms of its relevance, focus, responsiveness, and implementation arrangements.

The meeting also gathered CTI’s strategic partners and collaborators, namely USAID, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), The Nature Conservancy (TNC), Coral Triangle Center (CTC), German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), and Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), to discuss implementation of national and regional programs in each country as well as plans for the next five and ten years.

Furthermore, during the meeting, the CT6 Member Countries welcomed the new Executive Director of the CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat, Dr. Mohd Kushairi bin Mohd Rajuddin of Malaysia — former professor at UNISEL, a private university in Selangor, Malaysia — who has 35 years of professional experience in government, academia, and consultancy.

The senior officials also welcomed the new Deputy Executive Director for Corporate Services of the Regional Secretariat, Mr. Gustaf Adolf Lumiu of Indonesia, who previously worked as a consultant for UNDP, ASEAN Secretariat, and other multilateral funding institutions.

The annual Senior Officials Meeting serves as a formal mechanism to consolidate and strengthen relations among the CT6 Member Countries, assess national accomplishments with respect to the RPOA, review ongoing projects and activities, and identify areas for continued cooperation and collaboration. The Committee of Senior Officials (CSOs) oversees and decides on the technical matters of CTI and provides direction to the CTI Regional Secretariat.

The meeting was hosted by the Government of Solomon Islands and supported by TNC, WWF, CTC, and the Pacific Regional Oceanscape Project under the Ministry of Fisheries.

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About CTI-CFF 

The Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI -CFF) is a multilateral partnership of six countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste (CT6).  The CT6 countries work together to sustain extraordinary marine and coastal resources by addressing crucial issues such as food security, climate change, and marine biodiversity. The CTI-CFF was established formally during the Leaders’ Summit in 2009 with approval of the leaders from the CT6 countries. They adopted the CTI Regional Plan of Action (CTI RPOA) which is a strategic action plan with five goals: (1) designation of effectively managed seascapes; (2) application of an ecosystem approach to fisheries management; (3) establishment of a fully functional marine protected area system; (4) strengthening climate change adaptation and resilience; and (5) improving the status of threatened marine species.

About Regional Secretariat 

The Regional Secretariat (RS) of the CTI-CFF is mandated to promote regional cooperation, knowledge sharing, and learning facilities within the six-member countries of the Coral Triangle. The RS coordinates and monitors the progress of the implementation of the Regional Plan of Action (RPOA) goals. The RS coordinates and supports official meetings and events linked to the CTI-CFF process, including cross-cutting services in support of monitoring and evaluation, financial coordination, information management and outreach. It also coordinates the implementation of CTI-CFF RPOA and provides support to, and coordination with, NCCs, including advising the CTI-CSO on emerging opportunities and priorities to reaching the goals and targets of the RPOA. The RS also acts as the channel of communication and information sharing and foster networking among the Parties, CTI Partners and other organizations and donors in the efforts to promote the objectives of the CTI-CFF.  The Regional Secretariat is based in Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia.

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Media Contact:

Janet Rosalie Anne H. Polita
Communication & Information Manager
CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat
www.coraltriangleinitiative.org 

Email: jpolita@cticff.org and regional.secretariat@cticff.org