Link between wetlands and livelihoods in focus

 The inter-connectivity between wetlands and livelihood were in focus yesterday as stakeholders joined hands in celebrating World Wetlands Day.

Teaming up to mark the occasion were the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change, the agricultural and fisheries sectors, along with the Avani Hotel and Spa at Barbarons.

During the ceremony, held at the hotel, a sign board for the Barbarons boardwalk wetland was unveiled by the general manager of the Avani Hotel Thomas Barguil, and the Minister for Environment, Energy and Climate Change, Didier Dogley.

The programme ended with an exhibition and a field trip into the mangrove forest area surrounding the boardwalk for more natural acquaintance and on the hand transfer of knowledge of goods and services of the mangrove ecosystems to our day to day livelihoods.

Also present at the event were the principal secretary (PS) for energy and climate change Wills Agricole, the PS for environment Alain Decommarmond, among other guests and students.

Every February 2 the World Wetlands Day is celebrated all over the world by more than 162 countries. It marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands in 1971 on the shores of the Caspian Sea in the Iranian city of Ramsar, hence the name the ‘Ramsar Convention on Wetlands’.

This year’s theme to mark the World Wetlands Day – ‘Wetlands for our Future - Sustainable Livelihoods’ -- has come at an opportune time when the country is working together towards the overall protection and conservation of our wetlands and other natural resources, placing focus on the need for the development of wetlands for our agricultural, fisheries and other related sectors.

In Seychelles, all our wetlands have direct link to sustainable livelihoods through either by agricultural, or by fisheries and tourism industries.

Mr Barguil stated that the Avani hotel always strives to protect the environment and its surroundings.

“As a tourism establishment, we are actually aware of the primordial importance the natural environment commands to the success of our business. Visitors do not fly thousands of miles across the globe to visit these shores solely to sample the facilities we have on offer or the high quality of our services,” he said.

He added that the hotel will continue to provide the necessary help to the local authorities and communities.

“We will continue to work with the authorities and the local communities to identify areas where we could help in and add value to these ongoing conservation efforts,” he said.

Minister Dogley said that the World Wetlands Day is a very important day for us to focus on protecting the environment.

“Today across the world people are coming together to commemorate the Word Wetlands Day - a series of events of international importance that raise awareness about the key roles wetlands play in sustaining life on earth and in contributing towards human well being,” he said.

He pointed that Seychelles is also a member of the Ramsar Convention.

“Twelve years ago, in 2004, Seychelles became a member of the Ramsar Convention. So far we have declared three Ramsar sites of Wetlands of International Importance -- these are at Port Launay, Mare aux Cochons and the Aldabra Atoll,” he stated.

Noting that 64% of the world’s wetlands have been lost in the last century, the minister said: “We must work to counteract that trend so as to secure the future of our wetlands and our futures as well, as we cannot achieve sustainable development without healthy wetlands.”

“Enabling people to make a decent living, and at the same time ensuring that wetlands can still provide their essential services, do not have to be conflicting goals,” he added.

He stated that each year the government allocates and spends more than R6.5 million exclusively for restoration, cleaning and management of our wetlands and rivers.

Forrás: www.nation.sc