Port Moresby witnesses the Coral Triangle Initiative’s 12th Senior Officials’ Meeting and the 6th Ministerial Meeting

The Coral Triangle Initiative had its 12th Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM-12) and 6th Ministerial Meeting (MM-6) on 1–2 November 2016; and 3rd November 2016 respectively. Additionally, working group meetings were held on 31 October 2016 to discuss and agree on recommendations to be forwarded during SOM-12 and MM-6 for endorsement.

The 12th Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM-12)

Papua New Guinea, as the chair of both the Council of Senior Officers (CTI-CSO) and Council of Ministers (CTI-COM), hosted both meetings. The SOM-12 was chaired by Mr. Gunther Joku, Managing Director of Conservation and Environment Protection Authority (CEPA) on the first day; and Ms. Kay Kumaras Kalim, Director for Sustainable Environment Programs of CEPA on the subsequent day.

Over the years, these meetings have become an essential forum to review and discuss progress made by CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat, Member States, the five Technical Working Groups, the Governance Working Groups, and Cross-Cutting Themes towards achieving the Regional Plan of Action (RPOA) with concerted efforts from Member States and Development Partners, as well as the respective National Plan of Actions.

Mr. Widi A. Pratikto (2nd left), CTI-CFF Executive Director, reporting Regional Secretariat activities during the 12th Senior Officials’ Meeting.

“The SOM-12 is a unique platform for CTI-CFF National Coordinating Committee, Regional Secretariat and Development Partners to move forward with previous decisions as well as solicit consolidation and coordination in implementing the Regional Plan of Action (RPOA).” said CTI-CFF’s Executive Director, Widi A. Pratikto.

The Senior Officials of CTI-CFF National Coordinating Committee attended the SOM-12.

*Copy of the SOM-12 Chairman Summary can be found here: http://twk.pm/i4un9agbai

The 6th CTI-CFF Ministerial Meeting

The 6th CTI-CFF Ministerial Meeting was chaired by Hon. John Pundari, CMG, MP, Chair of CTI Council of Minister (CTI-COM) who is also the Minister for Environment and Conservation & Climate Change. Also in attendance were Hon. Datuk Seri Panglima Madius Tangau, Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation of Malaysia; Hon. Samuel Manetoali, Minister of Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology of Solomon Islands; Hon. Estanislau Aleixo da Silva, Minister of State, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs and Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries of Timor-Leste; H.E. Dr. Suseno Sukoyono, Minister’s Advisor to the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries of Indonesia for Public and Inter-Agency Relations; and H.E. Marcial C. Amaro, Jr, Assistant Secretary for Field Operations of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines.

“I welcome all of you, colleagues and friends, who have come to join me at this 6th Council of Ministers meeting in Port Moresby. I believe our discussions will focus on addressing many of the issues Papua New Guinea has raised and which are of similar nature to many of the issues in your own countries.” said Excellency John Pundari, PNG Minister for Environment and Conservation & Climate Change.

“Papua New Guinea is a party in this initiative, and I am proud to say that we too have come a long way in ensuring that our marine resources are managed and sustainably used for our economy and livelihood.”

CTI-CFF Executive Director (1st from the left) and CTI-CFF Council of Ministers attended the 6th Ministerial Meeting in Port Moresby.

The participating ministers welcomed the ratification of the Agreement on Establishment of CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat by all Member States and acknowledged the signing of the Host Country Agreement (HCA) between the Government of the Republic of Indonesia and the Regional Secretariat in Manado, Indonesia.

The CTI COM is the principal decision-making body of the CTI-CFF, responsible for maintaining the CTI-CFF vision and promoting regional priorities, considering, approving, or disapproving decisions made by the CTI Committee of Senior Officials (CTI-CSO) on proposals, recommendations, plans, programs, projects, and activities of the Regional Secretariat.

CTI-CFF Future Commitments and Resolve

The Ministers recognized that CTI-CFF plays an important role in conserving the world’s coral reefs and securing food security, considering increasing threats leading to degraded reefs and marine resources. The Member States recalled the commitments of CTI-CFF to pursue the implementation of the Regional Plan of Action (RPOA) and appreciated the progress made by each National Coordinating Committee (NCC) of CTI-CFF Member States towards implementing their respective National Plan of Action (NPOA), encouraging them to expedite full implementation.

They also acknowledged the achievements and progress made by the Technical Working Groups (TWGs), Governance Working Groups (GWGs), and Cross-Cutting Themes (CCT) with the support of Development Partners towards meeting RPOA goals. The Ministers further tasked the CTI Committee of Senior Officials (CTI-CSO) and Regional Secretariat to strengthen NCCs and empower TWGs and CCTs to hasten the effective implementation of the RPOA.

The members of the Council of Ministers agreed to appoint, based on advice from the Council of Senior Officers, the Deputy Executive Director for Program Services. They also acknowledged the Regional Secretariat’s efforts to establish cooperation through Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with SEAFDEC, CTC, SPREP, and GIZ; as well as with Bogor Agricultural University, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember Surabaya, Hasanuddin University, and Sam Ratulangi University to strengthen CTI-CFF’s research, education, and outreach programs. These university partnerships are a step toward establishing the Scientific Advisory Group (SAG).

Upcoming cooperation arrangements include PEMSEA, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT), James Cook University, University of Queensland, Solomon Islands National University, and others.

Handover of CTI-COM Chairmanship

The members of the Council of Ministers (CTI-COM) welcomed the new Chair from the Philippines and Vice Chair from Solomon Islands, and extended appreciation to Papua New Guinea for its leadership during its two-year chairmanship since 16 May 2014.

The chairmanship of the CTI-COM is rotated every two years among Member States in alphabetical order; the same applies to the vice-chairmanship.

“It is an honor for the Philippines to become the Chair of the CTI-CFF for this coming two years. Through this multilateral cooperation with the Governments of Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste.” said Assistant Secretary Marcial Amaro, Jr.

“The Philippines is committed and aims to actively do its part in safeguarding the world’s richest marine area, the Coral Triangle.”

The members of the CTI-COM and CTI-CSO expressed appreciation to all Development Partners for their invaluable support and welcomed future contributions towards maintaining and conserving this biologically diverse and ecologically rich region.