Regional Information Exchange and Policy Consensus on ICZM in the Western Indian Ocean

Programme Result Area 7

 

Coastal, and in particular marine environments and their natural resources do not know national borders. National Integrated Coastal Zone Management, although adherent to national legislative and policy frameworks, has to account for such transboundary effects. Thus, a Regional Policy Consensus on Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) would be highly beneficial for all the countries. Trans-boundary environmental processes and economic globalisation play as much a role in ICZM as do respective domestic issues. A prerequisite for such an enhanced policy consensus is an improved Regional Information Exchange on ICZM.

 

Most Governments in the Indian Ocean Region have developed specific ICZM Policies and are running programmes in ICZM. Numerous national and local governmental and non-governmental organisations, agencies and stakeholders are involved in active ICZM. There is the need for regional communication and for the coordination of implementation and monitoring in order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of ICZM at a regional scale. ReCoMaP supports the establishing of a formal Regional ICZM Policy Platform for the Western Indian Ocean where a multilateral dialogue on ICZM will lead to increased efficiency and enhanced sustainability of coastal development in the region.

 

ReCoMaP Support to the Regionalisation of ICZM

ReCoMaP being a regional ICZM Programme is ideally suited to support regionalisation efforts. It does so for example through these activities:

 

  • Coordination and cooperation with other regional coastal projects and programme such as
  • The South West Indian Ocean Fisheries Project (SWIOFP), implemented by The World Bank
  • The Agulhas and Somalia Current Large Marine Ecosystem Project (ASCLME), implemented by UNDP
  • Project 'Addressing land-based activities in the Western Indian Ocean' (WIO-LaB), implemented by UNEP and NC
  • Project 'Réseau des Aires Marines Protégées  des pays de la COI' (RAMP-COI) [Regional Marine Protected Area Networking]
  • Project 'Adaptation au changement climatique dans les etats de la COI' [Climate Change Adaptation Strategies in the Region]
  • Specific support to the development of an ICZM Protocol to the Nairobi Convention (NC)
  • General support to the negotiation and enactment of ICZM-relevant Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEA)
  • Support to a regional ICZM communication strategy and information networking
  • Development of an ICZM Information Management System (IMS) for the Region
  • Support to national representatives to participate in ICZM-relevant regional and meetings
  • Support to the Western Indian Ocean Marine Sciences Association (WIOMSA) as a Regional Coastal Science Node
  • Support to Marine Protected Area Management Networks in the Region (MPA)
  • Support to the Regional Technical Tourism Committee of the Indian Ocean Commission (COI)
  • Organisation of exchange visits of ICZM stakeholders within and outside the Region