Distinguished Friends and Colleagues,

As 2013 draws to a close, I sit in my office and take a moment to salute you—members and partners of the Coral Triangle Initiative for Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF)—for your continued commitment to our mission and for the trust you have placed in the CTI-CFF Interim Regional Secretariat (IRS) to provide coordination and support for the implementation of regional activities.

The CTI-CFFCoordination Mechanism Working Group Meeting is scheduled on February 18, 2014 in Putrajaya, Malaysia. For further details about this activity contact Ms. Lydia Napitupulu at cti.cmwg@gmail.com

Prompted by the increasing impact of climate change on one of Southeast Asia’s major coral reef systems, and guided by lessons from the destruction caused by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, CTI-CFF member countries have called on governments worldwide to implement policies and programs that strengthen marine resource conservation and enhance the resilience of coastal communities to climate change impacts.

The further implementation of the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Operations Manual of the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF) has been successfully advanced, with all member countries endorsing it and establishing a timetable for M&E implementation. The M&E Working Group (MEWG) presented its report during the 9th CTI-CFF Senior Officials Meeting (SOM9), held on 26–27 November 2013 in Manila.

To further strengthen their commitment to protecting and sustaining the world’s epicenter of marine biodiversity, the member countries of the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF) have pledged to launch its Permanent Secretariat and appoint an Executive Director by mid-2014.

A new set of user-friendly guidebooks for designing local marine protected areas is now available for practitioners in Coral Triangle countries.