CORAL TRIANGLE CURRENTS
MAY 2014

Stage Set for Establishment of Permanent CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat, Partners Pledge Continued Support

The Coral Triangle Ministers signing their Joint Statement at the 5th CTI-CFF Ministerial Meeting in Manado, Indonesia (Courtesy: MMAF-Indonesia)
  
The CTI-CFF marked its 5th anniversary with a major milestone, and with assurance of continued support from Partners.
  
At the 5th CTI-CFF Ministerial Meeting (MM5) on May 15 - exactly five years since the Coral Triangle Leaders signed their "Declaration on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security" that launched the CTI-CFF - Datuk Dr. Ewon Ebin, Malaysia's Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation and outgoing Chair of the CTI-CFF Council of Ministers (CTI COM), announced that four countries had ratified the Agreement on the Establishment of the Regional Secretariat of CTI-CFF, enabling the last phase before entry into force and the establishment of the permanent Secretariat. The much anticipated announcement came after Timor-Leste and Solomon Islands confirmed that they had ratified the Agreement, becoming the third and fourth countries, respectively, to have done so. MORE
Papua New Guinea Assumes Chair of CTI-CFF Council of Ministers, Philippines is Vice Chair

Symbolic handover of the CTI COM Chairmanship from Malaysia to Papua New Guinea at the 5th Ministerial Meeting in Manado, Indonesia (Courtesy: Ogie Delos Reyes/DENR-Philippines)
Papua New Guinea (PNG) is the new Chair of the CTI-CFF Council of Ministers (CTI COM), and the Philippines is the new Vice Chair. They will serve a term that began on May 16, 2014 and ends on May 16, 2016 or "when the next Ministerial Meeting will be held after 16 May 2016."
  
PNG's Minister for the Environment, Conservation and Climate Change, Mr. John Pundari, took over the CTI COM chairmanship from Malaysia's Science, Technology and Innovation Minister, Datuk Dr. Ewon Ebin. He was represented by Environment, Conservation and Climate Change Department Secretary, Mr. Gunther Joku, in a handover ceremony on May 15, at the conclusion of the 5th Ministerial Meeting in Manado, Indonesia. MORE
Regional Secretariat Operations Plan and Budget
Approved for 2014

 
The facilitation of regional meetings, such as the above shown Special Senior Officials Meeting held on May 14-15 in Manado, Indonesia, is a core function of the soon-to-be-established permanent Regional Secretariat (Courtesy: MMAF-Indonesia)
The CTI-CFF Council of Ministers (CTI COM), acting on the recommendation of the Committee of Senior Officials, has approved the 2014 Operations Plan and Budget of the soon-to-be established permanent Regional Secretariat of the CTI-CFF.
  
The approval came at the CTI COM's fifth meeting in Manado, Indonesia on May 15, at the last phase of a multi-stage process that began with staff work and discussions at the level of the Coordination Mechanisms Working Group (CMWG). The CMWG deliberated and agreed on the final Plan and Budget on May 13, the first day of a week-long series of CTI-CFF-related activities at the World Coral Reef Conference held on May 14-17 in Manado.
  
An indicative plan and budget for 2015 has also been approved. MORE
Ministers Endorse Regional Fisheries and MPA Management Frameworks
Presentation of the CTMPAS Framework to the CTI-CFF Council of Ministers on May 15 in Manado, Indonesia (Courtesy: Ogie Delos Reyes/DENR-Philippines)

 

On May 15, the CTI-CFF Ministers agreed to use two regional resource management frameworks developed for the Coral Triangle for policy making at the national level.

 

The Ministers, who were in Manado, Indonesia for their 5th Ministerial Meeting (MM5), issued an 18-point Joint Ministerial Statement that includes, among others, an agreement to "apply the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM) Regional Framework and the Coral Triangle Marine Protected Area System (CTMPAS) Framework in our (respective) national policies." MORE

New Thematic Working Group Established to Focus on Threatened Species

 

Giant clam in waters off Papua New Guinea: The improvement of the status of threatened species like this will be the focus of the CTI-CFF's newly created Threatened Species Working Group (Courtesy: James Morgan)
The 5th CTI-CFF Ministerial Meeting (MM5) approved the establishment of a new thematic technical working group (TWG), bringing to five the total number of active TWGs under the CTI-CFF, each corresponding to one of the five thematic goals of the CTI-CFF Regional Plan of Action (RPOA). Called the Threatened Species Working Group (TSWG), the new TWG will be primarily responsible for facilitating progress on Goal 5 of the RPOA (Threatened species status improving). MORE
Brunei Darussalam Reiterates Interest in Joining CTI-CFF

Brunei Darussalam Industry and Primary Resources Minister Pehin Dato Yahya Bakar (Courtesy: Ogie Delos Reyes/DENR-Philippines)
Brunei Darussalam, sitting as an Observer State at the 5th CTI-CFF Ministerial Meeting (MM5) in Manado, Indonesia, on May 15, reconfirmed its intent to be a Party to the CTI-CFF.
  
The sultanate was represented in the MM5 by Industry and Primary Resources Minister Pehin Dato Yahya Bakar, who told the body that his government is confident they can fulfil the CTI-CFF's requirements for membership. "Our area may be small, but due to our stringent conservation policies, our marine environment is well-protected," he said. MORE
Four MPAs Named Flagship Sites of Coral Triangle Marine Protected Area System 
Coral Triangle Marine Protected Area System flagship and priority development sites (Click image
to view large map)
 
The first four flagship sites of the Coral Triangle Marine Protected Area System (CTMPAS) were revealed on May 13 in a launch activity at the sidelines of the World Coral Reef Conference in Manado, Indonesia.
  
The four sites - Wakatobi National Park in Indonesia, Turtle Islands Park in Malaysia, and Turtle Islands Wildlife Sanctuary and Tubbataha Reefs National Park World Heritage Site in the Philippines - were found to have met the criteria set out under the CTMPAS Framework and Action Plan for "Category 4: Flagship Sites," defined as "large, already effectively managed sites that have regional ecological, governance and socioeconomic importance." MORE
Coral Triangle Center Joins CTI-CFF as Partner

The CTI-CFF Council of Ministers (COM) on May 15 approved the Coral Triangle Center (CTC) as a CTI-CFF Partner.
  
CTC, an NGO based in Bali, Indonesia, is the first new Partner of the CTI-CFF since the regional forum was launched in 2009. It joins three of the world's biggest environmental NGOs - Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy and World Wide Fund for Nature - who have been Partners of the CTI-CFF from the outset, along with the Government of Australia, United States Government, Asian Development Bank, and Global Environment Facility. MORE
Highlights
Regional Secretariat Operations Plan and Budget Approved for 2014
Ministers Endorse Regional Fisheries and MPA Management Frameworks
New Thematic Working Group Established to Focus on Threatened Species
Brunei Darussalam Reiterates Interest in Joining CTI-CFF
Four MPAs Named Flagship Sites of Coral Triangle Marine Protected Area System
Coral Triangle Center Joins CTI-CFF as Partner
COUNTDOWN TO CORAL TRIANGLE DAY 2014: Philippine Province Prepares to Mark Coral Triangle Day
FEATURED IMAGES: Tubbataha Reefs by Catlin Seaview Survey
FEATURED PUBLICATIONS: State of the Coral Triangle Reports
UPCOMING EVENTS 

 

Coral Triangle Day 2014
 Region-wide
June 9

 

  
Dili, Timor-Leste
Nov 5-7
 
COUNTDOWN TO CORAL TRIANGLE DAY 2014

 

The Provincial Government and private sector in Cebu Province in the Philippines will join the CTI-CFF in celebrating the Coral Triangle Day on June 9.

 Local governments across the province and at least four big hotels in Lapu-Lapu City are organizing activities in line with the celebration. MORE

  

 

FEATURED IMAGES: Tubbataha Reefs by Catlin Seaview Survey

  
The Catlin Seaview Survey has published on Google Maps some amazing photospheres from their survey of Tubbataha Reefs, Philippines, in March 2014, providing a glimpse of the irreplaceable natural treasures that the CTI-CFF Countries are together trying to protect. MORE
  
 
FEATURED PUBLICATIONS:
State of the Coral Triangle Reports

  
The first editions of the State of the Coral Triangle Reports are now available for free downloading at the Coral Triangle Knowledge Network website. Launched on May 13 at the sidelines of the World Coral Reef Conference in Manado, Indonesia, the series includes a Regional State of the Coral Triangle Report and six corresponding country-level State of the Coral Triangle Reports that identify key issues decision makers must address if sustainable development of the Coral Triangle's coastal and marine resources is to be achieved. MORE
  
 
CTI-CFF Women Leaders' Forum Launched
  
An innovative platform to highlight the role of women leaders in protecting and sustaining the world's epicenter of marine biodiversity was launched on May 13 at the sidelines of the World Coral Reef Conference in Manado, Indonesia. MORE  

Indonesian Vice President Visits CTI Centre

Indonesia's Vice President Boediono on May 16 was given a preview tour of the facility that will house the CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat.
  Located in Grand Kawanua International City (GKIC) in Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia, the new, 1.5-hectare CTI Centre Complex was built by the Indonesian Government to serve as the regional hub of the CTI-CFF. MORE
  
For more information on the CTI-CFF, contact:   

Dr. Hendra Siry
Secretary for Coordination and External Affairs
CTI-CFF Interim Regional Secretariat
Mina Bahari II Bldg, 17th Fl.
Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries
Jl. Medan Merdeka Timur, Jakarta 10110
      
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