Marine Atlas: Maximizing Benefits for Kiribati

KIRIBATI’S COMMITMENT TO MARINE CONSERVATION

Kiribati is committed to sustainably managing and conserving its marine values. By creating the PIPA, it fulfilled its international obligation of conserving 10 per cent of its waters, but Kiribati is going further still.

cent of Kiribati’s EEZ. Furthermore, the gov- ernment of Kiribati aims to scale up national efforts towards creating community- and island-based MPAs throughout the country. In 2017, the interim Interministerial Ocean Committee was formed through the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources Develop- ment and the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Agricultural Development, to prepare for the United Nations Ocean Conference and discuss Marine Spatial Planning efforts in the islands of Tarawa and Kiritimati. The members of this committee include technical experts from government minis- tries, which include: • Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Re- sources Development • Ministry of Environment, Lands and Agri- cultural Development • Office of the President (Te Beretitenti) • Ministry of Finance and Economic De- velopment • Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration • Ministry of Justice • Kiribati Police Service and Maritime Surveillance • Ministry of Information, Communication, Transport and Tourism Development • Ministry of Health and Medical Services • Kiribati Ports Authority • Ministry of Line and Phoenix Islands Development • Phoenix Islands Protected Area Imple- mentation Office • Ministry of Internal and Social Affairs This interim Interministerial Ocean Com- mittee, led by the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources Development, sought cabinet approval to institutionalize ocean governance-related committees within gov- ernment, which include the national overar- ching steering committee for Kiribati’s EEZ,

Kiribati has long realized the many values it derives from the sea, and the importance of sustainably managing and planning it uses (see also previous chapter). Thus, Kiribati joined many other countries in signing and ratifying the international Convention on Bi- ological Diversity (CBD), under which Kiribati has accepted international responsibilities and obligations, including Aichi Target 11: “By 2020, at least 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water areas and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas, especially areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem services, are conserved through effectively and equitably man- aged, ecologically representative and well-connected systems of protected are- as and other effective area-based conser- vation measures, and integrated into the wider landscape and seascape.” To address this, in 2006, Kiribati established the PIPA, one of the largest large-scale MPAs in the world, which constitutes around 11 per

than 1,300 commitments to action, marks a breakthrough in the global approach to the management and conservation of the ocean. Recognizing that the well-being of pres- ent and future generations is inextricably linked to the health and productivity of the ocean, countries collectively agreed in the Call to Action “to act decisively and urgent- ly, convinced that our collective action will make a meaningful difference to our people, to our planet and to our prosperity”. The second highest number of commit- ments come from the South Pacific, high- lighting not only the importance of the ocean to Pacific Island countries, but also their commitment to “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development” (SDG 14). Kiribati is calling for action to conserve val- uable life below the surface, within its own waters and beyond.

its technical geographic information system (GIS) support committee and the relevant policy instruments required. The government is now moving towards initiating MSP processes in Tarawa, Kiritima- ti and other Line Islands, as well as finalizing steps for institutionalizing functional ocean governance committees and policy instru- ments to oversee a broad range of issues concerning Kiribati’s EEZ. This shows that Kiribati is committed to sus- tainably managing and conserving its marine values. In this spirit, Kiribati submitted three Voluntary Commitments (VCs) to the United Nations Ocean Conference in June 2017. Two of these VCs were commitments by the PIPA Scientific Advisory Committee and its partners to collaborate further on research in the PIPA. These efforts will include focusing

on the impacts of ocean acidification, tuna dynamics , and exploring models for com- munity MPAs that could be applied in other inhabited islands of Kiribati. “The Ocean Conference has changed our relationship with the ocean. Henceforth none can say they were not aware of the harm humanity has done to the ocean’s health. We are now working around the world to restore a relationship of balance and respect towards the ocean,” said the President of the United Nations General Assembly Peter Thomson, from Fiji, at the closing of the United Nations Ocean Conference. The 193 Member States of the United Nations unanimously agreed to a set of measures that aim to reverse the decline of the ocean’s health. The Call for Action outcome document, together with more

Voluntary Commitments Voluntary Commitments (VCs) for The Ocean Conference are initiatives vol- untarily undertaken by governments, the United Nations system, other intergovernmental organizations, international and regional financial institutions, non-governmental or- ganizations and civil society organ- izations, academic and research institutions, the scientific community, the private sector, philanthropic organizations and other actors— whether individually or in partner- ship—that aim to help implement Sustainable Development Goal 14.

MANAGING MAXIMIZING BENEFITS FOR KIRIBATI

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