The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is optimistic that the Nagoya Protocol will reach a milestone 100 ratifications this year. So far, 70 nations have become Parties to the Protocol.
Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias, Secretary General, Convention on Biological Diversity
Ratification to the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of
Benefits Arising from their Utilisation hit 70 on 29 December 2015 following accession by Slovakia.
Nigeria signed the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-sharing on February 1, 2012, but she is yet to ratify the treaty. Nigeria and 91 other nations are mere signatories to the Protocol. Several other nations have neither signed nor ratified the treaty.
Besides Slovakia, countries like Cambodia, Croatia, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Mauritania, Pakistan, Philippines and the Republic of the Congo ratified the Nagoya Protocol in 2015.
Parties to the Protocol have either ratified, acceded to, approved or accepted the Convention. The implication is that the treaty becomes legally binding on the State (or the regional economic integration organisation).
States which have not signed a treaty during the time when it is open for signature can only accede to it. Slovakia, for example, acceded to the Protocol.
“Reaching 70 Parties to the Nagoya Protocol is certainly a milestone. However, we need to ensure that this
momentum is maintained throughout the year in order for us to achieve our goal of reaching 100 ratifications by the second meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Nagoya Protocol (COP-MOP 2), being held in December 2016,” said Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity. “For this purpose, I count on the support of CBD Parties and our partners to promote ratification and I encourage countries yet to do so, to ratify the Protocol at their earliest convenience.”
In December 2015, the UN General Assembly echoed these views by inviting CBD Parties to ratify the Nagoya Protocol in resolution 70/472.
Ratifying the Protocol prior to COP-MOP 2 will enable countries to participate in decision-making at this
meeting and in further advancing implementation of the Nagoya Protocol. The impact of the Protocol in
creating greater transparency and legal certainty for providers and users of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge will increase as more countries join the Protocol and undertake to implement its obligations.
In 2016, with a view to supporting implementation of the Nagoya Protocol, the International Development
Law Organisation and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity will hold capacity building
courses aimed at equipping national-policy-makers and legislators to develop legal frameworks on Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS). These courses will introduce participants to the core requirements of the Nagoya Protocol, key considerations for the design and implementation of ABS frameworks, and the different approaches to ABS based on country experiences and best practices.
The Nagoya Protocol is critical for the sustainable and equitable use of biodiversity. Allowing Parties to
fully benefit from their genetic resources generates new opportunities and incentives to conserve and
sustainably use biodiversity. The fair and equitable sharing of benefits from genetic resources is one of the
three main objectives of the Convention, with the other two being the conservation of biodiversity and the
sustainable use of its components.
Opened for signature at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, and entering into force in
December 1993, the CBD is an international treaty for the conservation of biodiversity, the sustainable use of the components of biodiversity and the equitable sharing of the benefits derived from the use of genetic resources.
With 196 Parties up to now, the Convention has near universal participation among countries. The Convention seeks to address all threats to biodiversity and ecosystem services, including threats from climate change, through scientific assessments, the development of tools, incentives and processes, the transfer of technologies and good practices and the full and active involvement of relevant stakeholders including indigenous and local communities, youth, NGOs, women and the business community.
Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, has announced the death of one confirmed Lassa fever victim at the National Hospital, Abuja.
The National Hospital, Abuja. Photo credit: media.premiumtimesng.com/
Prof. Adewole confirmed the development on Wednesday evening at the National Hospital.
He called on health workers at all levels to be more vigilant and look out for patients with symptoms of Lassa fever.
The minister has also directed that all primary and secondary contacts of the victim should be tracked, including the staff of the private hospital in Kubwa, where the deceased was first managed for one week and subsequently became unconscious before referral to the National Hospital.
He also advised that family members should report at the nearest hospital if anyone has fever for more than two days
Adewole told residents of Abuja not to panic but to maintain high level vigilance and present themselves for test if they feel unhealthy or they feel symptoms of Lassa fever. The symptoms include high fever, stooling, tiredness and vomiting.
Adewole added that self-medication should be avoided at this period.
Medical Director of the National Hospital, Dr. Jack Momoh, who briefed Adewole on Tuesday evening during his visit to the Hospital, said the patient was brought in unconscious from a private hospital in Kubwa, where he was admitted for eight days.
The 33-year-old, who was newly married, lived in Jos Plateau but came to see a family member in Kubwa because of his illness.
He however died within 24 hours of presentation at the National Hospital.
The latest death from Lassa fever brings the total number of deaths to 43 in the country.
Understanding lives of marginalised indigenous hunter-gatherers is the first step to defending them against loss of rights and access to forests, experts say
Pygmy communities who have lost their traditional livelihoods and lands find themselves at the bottom of ‘mainstream’ society. Photo credit: Salomé/Survival
Increased deforestation and road building in Central African rainforests will intensify threats to the lives and lifestyles of indigenous Pygmy communities, a new study suggests.
The study, which provides the first measured estimate of the population and distribution of the increasingly marginalised indigenous groups, found that the forests of Central Africa could be home to up to 920,000 Pygmies.
Until now, it has not been possible to determine the numbers and actual geographic ranges of Pygmy communities because of their location in remote forest areas, mobility, lack of census data, and imprecise and partial sources of information.
Pygmy communities live in rainforests across nine countries in Central Africa – an area of some 170 million hectares – where they make up a very small minority of the total population. They identify closely with the forest and many still depend largely on wild forest products. Most Pygmy groups move around, for social and nutritional reasons, within a specific territory or group of territories to which they have affiliations through clan or marriage relations.
Despite the Pygmies’ significance to humanity’s cultural diversity as the largest group of active hunter-gatherers in the world, the new study, published in PLOS ONE, is said to be the first to predict how many Pygmies are likely to be found in the vast expanse of tropical forests in Central Africa. The study also maps their distribution, and identifies which areas are of ecological importance for them.
The study was led by Prof. John E. Fa from Manchester Metropolitan University, and senior research associate with the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR); Dr. Jesús Olivero, an expert biogeographer at the Biogeography, Diversity and Conservation research group of the University of Malaga in Spain; and Dr. Jerome Lewis, an anthropologist at University College, London, who has worked extensively with Pygmies and supported them to better defend their rights.
The study compiles evidence collected by an unprecedented number of researchers – a total of 26 contributors, including anthropologists, conservation biologists and biogeographers from the USA, Canada, Europe, Japan and Cameroon, active human rights groups, and bilateral and livelihood organisations.
The information generated by these co-authors made it possible to generate the largest-ever database of the locations of Pygmy camps. In the absence of any known accurate censuses of Pygmies, the researchers predicted where they live by using statistical methods, developed by Dr. Olivero and his team in Malaga, based on species distribution modeling (SDM) methods that investigate the relationships between environmental conditions and the distribution of organisms. ThePLOS ONE study is the first to apply this method to human societies and their cultural diversity.
“By using tried and tested animal and plant distribution models, we hope to raise greater awareness of the importance of these too often ignored and marginalized groups in this region,” Dr. Olivero said.
Dr. Olivero noted that the study’s participants undertook the research to boost the visibility and understanding of what is an increasingly marginalised and threatened indigenous people.
“Pygmy communities depend on the forest but their access to forest areas is becoming increasingly difficult because of industrialisation and the expansion of market-led initiatives, displacement, forced sedentarisation, disease and deforestation,” Dr. Olivero said.
“This is a very underprivileged and neglected group of people, many of whom have already lost their forest land and livelihoods and whose rich cultural traditions are seriously threatened in many regions,” said Dr. Jerome Lewis.
“Information on their locations and population numbers are crucial for developing appropriate human rights, cultural and land security safeguards for them, as for other indigenous peoples,” Dr. Lewis added.
Understanding where and how Pygmy communities live is an important first step in supporting them and safeguarding their rights, Prof. Fa said.
“It’s important for all of the countries involved to come together to help support Pygmies’ cultures and human rights to make sure they are respected and understood,” Prof. Fa added.
“At the end of the day, 900,000 people living in small groups in such a vast area can very easily be ignored, leading to their cultural extinction, and given the extraordinary role they have played in the human story since well before antiquity, we don’t want that.”
Ministers, high-level representatives from the business sector and top UN and multilateral agency officials are gathering in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), for the first time after the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in France in December to discuss the implications of the historic Paris Agreement.
The UAE Minister of State and Special Envoy for Climate Change, Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, is chief host of the forum. Photo credit: albawaba.com
On 16-17 January, government officials from over 150 countries and representatives from the private sector, civil society and international organisations will convene for the 6th assembly of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).
This year’s Assembly will focus on the critical role of renewable energy in combating climate change and meeting other Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
IRENA analysis shows that scaling up deployment to achieve a 36 per cent share of renewable energy in the global energy mix by 2030 can provide roughly half of the emissions reductions needed to keep the global temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius, while energy efficiency can provide the rest.
The IRENA Assembly is part of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (running to 23 January), believed to be one of the world’s largest annual gatherings in sustainability and renewable energy.
A special high-level event during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week – Global Action Day – will be held on 18th January to take stock of COP 21 outcomes with a particular focus on identifying pre-2020 actions that can be taken by both the public and private sectors.
The event will be attended by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, French Foreign Minister and COP 21 President Laurent Fabius, UAE Minister of State and Special Envoy for Climate Change Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Ministers from Morocco (host of the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference COP22) and the UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres.
Also on 18 January, Ms. Figueres will brief the press about the implications of COP 21 and the next steps to achieve ratification and full and effective implementation of the agreement. The press briefing will take place at 1:30 pm local time in Capital Suite 10 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company.
The briefing is the first UNFCCC press conference after the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris.
On the same day, Ms. Figueres will attend the awards ceremony of the Zayed Future Energy Prize as jury member. The award celebrates achievements that reflect impact, innovation, long-term vision and leadership in renewable energy and sustainability.
Nigeria and four other African countries are beneficiaries to a $15 million grant aimed at keeping the continent polio-free. This is part of the $35 million announced in the US on Wednesday by Rotary in grants aimed at supporting the global effort to end polio.
Victims of polio
While Nigeria will receive $5.5 million, Cameroon gets $1.6 million, Chad $2 million, Ethiopia $4.1 million, and Somalia $1,8 million.
Additional funds will be used to support polio eradication efforts in endemic and at-risk countries like Pakistan ($11.4 million), Afghanistan ($6 million), Iraq ($1.6 million) and India ($600,000). About $350,000 in funds will be dedicated to polio research.
According to Rotary, Africa in 2015 proved a hub of historic progress against the paralysing disease. Nigeria – the last polio-endemic country in Africa – was removed from the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) list of endemic countries in September, following one year without a new case of the wild virus. The last wild polio case on the African continent was in August 2014.
“We are closer than ever to achieving a polio-free world,” said Michael K. McGovern, chair of Rotary’s International PolioPlus Committee. “To ensure that no child ever again suffers the devastating effects of this disease, we must all ensure that the necessary funds and political will are firmly in place in 2016.”
He added that, today, just two countries – Afghanistan and Pakistan – are reporting a single strain of the wild virus.
To sustain this progress, and protect all children from polio, experts say $1.5 billion is urgently needed. Without full funding and political commitment, the disease could return to previously polio-free countries, putting children everywhere at risk, noted McGovern.
Rotary launched its polio immunisation programme PolioPlus in 1985 and, in 1988, became a spearheading partner in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative with the WHO, UNICEF, and the U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, which was later joined by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Since the initiative launched, the incidence of polio has reportedly plummeted by more than 99.9 percent, from about 350,000 cases a year to 70 confirmed to date in 2015.
Rotary has contributed over $1.5 billion and volunteer hours to fight polio.
According to McGovern, through 2018, every dollar Rotary commits to polio eradication will be matched two-to-one by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation up to $35 million a year.
The Synthesis Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) is available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish – the official languages of the United Nations.
Originally published in English, the Synthesis Report was translated in order to make the key findings of AR5 accessible to a wider audience, according to the IPCC, adding that the report distils and integrates the findings of the three Working Group contributions to the AR5 that span over 4700 pages into a concise document of about 130 pages that can be used by policymakers and other stakeholders.
The Working Group volumes were released in phases between 2013 and 2014 and the English version of the Synthesis Report in November 2014. The documents can be found at www.ipcc.ch/ar5/syr.
Below are links to the different language versions of the Synthesis Report:
The IPCC stated in a statement on Monday that, for those who would not want to download the full Synthesis Report, a Summary for Policymakers of about 30 pages is available in all the languages on same page www.ipcc.ch/ar5/syr under the section SPM in UN and other languages Th.
“IPCC welcomes the translation of the AR5 Synthesis Report into languages that are not UN official languages. The IPCC Secretariat makes these available on its website with the understanding that the translations are prepared under the responsibility of the respective countries or institutions undertaking them.”
The Synthesis Report, adds the IPCC, can also be accessed at http://ar5-syr.ipcc.ch/ on a more user-friendly platform that enables users to navigate around the report and easily access the references to the full Working Group contributions through live links.
The key findings of the AR5 Synthesis Report are:
Human influence on the climate system is clear;
The more we disrupt our climate, the more we risk severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts; and
We have the means to limit climate change and build a more prosperous, sustainable future.
Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, has given explanations on why former President Goodluck Jonathan has not been arrested over the controversial $2.1 billion arms deal.
Ibrahim Magu, EFCC chairman
The fund, which was managed by the Office of former National Security Adviser, retired Colonel Sambo Dasuki, has led to the arrest, detention, questioning and arraignment of so many prominent Nigerians, with some wondering why Jonathan, believed to be the principal actor in the unfolding scenario, had not been arrested or summoned for questioning.
Offering reasons why Jonathan was yet to be summoned by the EFCC, Magu said no document has been traced to Jonathan giving any approval for the disbursement of the money for any other purpose than arms purchase.
Magu told a gathering of online news publishers under the aegis of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) on Monday in Lagos, that all those questioned so far in connection with the money were people who disbursed or collected it for reasons other than the purchase of arms and ammunition.
Answering a question, Magu said: “All approvals by former President Jonathan did not mention that it was for political purposes. All the memos approved by him was for the purchase of arms.”
The bulk of the money disbursed from the $2.1 billion had been traced to financing the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and promoting the bid of Jonathan to retain the presidential seat in the 2015 general election.
Director of Media and Publicity of the PDP Presidential Campaign team, Femi Fani-Kayode, confirmed he received N1.7 billion for publicity for the 2015 election.
National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Olisa Metuh, was also given N400 million out of the money. Metuh has been with the EFCC since last week Tuesday.
Political parties that did not produce presidential candidates for the election were also given N100 million each to support Jonathan.
The N100 million gift is still causing a major rift in the Social Democratic Party (SDP), with some state chapters denying they received from the money as alleged by their National Chairman, Chief Olu Falae.
Magu said it was not in the character of the EFCC to just summon people for the sake of it.
He said the Commission does its work thoroughly before inviting anyone and that it had not summoned some people as clamoured in the public space because there were no documents indicting them.
The 66th session of the Standing Committee of CITES holds this week in Geneva, Switzerland in the bid to to take vital decisions on the world’s wildlife trade policy and to find solutions to tackle illicit wildlife trafficking. The Committee will review progress made in preparing and implementing National Ivory Action Plans, domestic legislation, and additional measures to protect Asian big cats, cheetahs, African grey parrots, pangolins, rhinos, sharks and timber
Elephants. Photo credit: planetsave.com
Close to 500 participants from across the globe including Nigeria are attending the 66th meeting of the Standing Committee (SC66) of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the world’s wildlife trade regulator since 1975. The gathering seeks to tackle crucial wildlife conservation and management issues affecting the survival of a myriad of wild plants and animals.
Among the high priority issues on the agenda for the meeting are the illegal killing of elephants for their ivory and rhinos for their horns and the illegal trade in Asian big cats, pangolins and various high value timber species, including rosewood. SC66 will also address the adequacy of national legislation to implement CITES in 17 priority countries and the lack of submission of annual reports of trade, including whether compliance measures may be necessary. A review of significant volumes of trade in selected species will also be considered by SC66 together with recommendations to ensure the trade in the species concerned is at sustainable level.
The Committee will finalise its recommendations to the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES (CoP17) – the triennial World Wildlife Conference, which will take place in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 24 September to 5 October 2016 at which the 181 Parties to CITES will take critical decisions on wildlife trade policy and the scope of regulatory control over international trade in specific species.
Secretary-General of CITES, Mr John E. Scanlon, said: “Tackling illicit wildlife trafficking has risen to the top of the political agenda and a global collective effort is underway to reverse the disturbing trends affecting elephants, rhinos, pangolins, rosewood and other species. 2016 will be a critical year for reviewing the on-ground impacts of our collective endevours, further strengthening policies, budgets, laws and enforcement, as well as enhancing measures to reduce demand for illegal wildlife products, which will all come together at CITES CoP17 in Johannesburg in just 256 days from now.”
“At the same time, we are seeing scaled up efforts to improve legal and sustainable trade, such as through CITES Parties’ concerted efforts to implement CITES listings of sharks.” added Scanlon.
Compliance measures: possible recommendations to suspend trade
During the course of the week, the Standing Committee will consider compliance measures, including recommendations to suspend trade, which will affect a number of Parties. These include:
Seven countries may be subject to a recommendation to suspend trade in all CITES-listed species for failing to make sufficient progress in preparing and adopting national legislation to implement and enforce CITES.
20 species – and country specific trade suspensions will be discussed resulting from the ongoing Review of Significant Trade process, which assesses whether the levels of trade that Parties allow for certain wild animals or plants are sustainable. These range from monkeys and pythons from Laos and chameleons from Benin, Cameroon and Ghana, to giant clams from Solomon Islands and corals from Fiji.
the suspension of trade in some high-value timber species from Madagascar: 48 species of Dalbergia (5 rosewoods and 43 palisanders) and 233 species of Diospyros (ebonys)] in consideration of the continued illegal logging and illegal exports.
the suspension of commercial trade in Psittacus erithacus (African grey parrots) from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Some countries may be subject to potential compliance measures for not submitting annual reports on trade in CITES-listed species.
Combating corruption
The issue of corruption will be a matter of discussion at SC66. A number of CITES-listed species are high-value items targeted by organized crime groups, and this makes the officers responsible for regulating trade in specimens of these species potentially vulnerable to corruption. It is becoming increasingly important for CITES Parties to ensure that adequate measures are in place to identify, prevent and address corruption in line with the UN Convention against Corruption.
The changing pattern of international trade from wild to non-wild sources
The proportion of CITES-listed animal species in international trade that are reported as having been bred in captivity, born in captivity or ranched has been steadily increasing over many years. For commercial trade in live animals, it accounted for over half of all reported trade during the period 2000-2012. A similar trend appears to be evident in plant specimens that have been artificially propagated. This trend is expected to continue, particularly if demand for animals and plants remains the same, or increases, with supplies from the wild being increasingly difficult to obtain. However, the impact of this change on the conservation and sustainable use of the species concerned is poorly known and deserves closer analysis.
Declaring specimens as captive bred or artificially propagated has also been used to launder animals and plants illegally sourced from the wild. Delegates will consider proposals for CoP17 designed to improve the implementation of the Convention in relation to specimens of non-wild source.
Strategic Programme of ICCWC
The International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) will unveil this week a series of documents and programmes and highlight five years of achievements in combating wildlife crime.
Elephants
The level of elephant poaching in Africa has declined somewhat since the peak reached 2011, but remains at unsustainably high levels. This trend appears to correlate with population declines in parts of the continent.
The meeting will discuss the progress made in the preparation and implementation of National Ivory Action Plans (NIAPs) by 19 countries (8 Parties of “primary concern”, 8 Parties of “secondary concern” and 3 Parties of “importance to watch”) identified as most heavily implicated in the illegal trade in ivory including source, transit and destination States. This is a major concrete effort initiated by CITES to address the surge in elephant poaching and the illegal trade in elephant ivory, which has proven to be a successful approach to address a complicated issue
Rhinoceros
Despite considerable efforts to combat rhinoceros poaching and rhinoceros horn trafficking, the number of rhinoceroses killed illegally remains at alarmingly high levels year after year. The activities conducted by key countries will be discussed at SC66. The high value of rhinoceros horn makes it a lucrative and attractive commodity for transnational organized crime groups. It is increasingly important for authorities to deploy the same tools and techniques used to combat other serious domestic and transnational organized crimes such as drugs and arms trafficking, to combat wildlife crime, including rhino poaching and illegal rhino horn trade, targeting those individuals managing and organizing these illegal activities.
Tree species
Parties will be invited to consider strengthening cooperation at all levels, not only among range States, but also with transit and destination countries, to reduce the current levels of illegal trade in these valuable species to the minimum possible. Also, the Secretariat is proposing to continue strengthening capacities worldwide to implement CITES for rosewood, palisanders and ebonies for the next three years after the upcoming CITES CoP17.
Asian big cats
Trafficking in Asian big cats continues to be detected, and further strengthened enforcement efforts are therefore vital to combat illegal trafficking and implementation of existing management practices and controls, to prevent animals coming from captive breeding facilities from entering illegal trade. The Secretariat and the inter-sessional working group on Asian big cats will report on the implementation of a set of decisions and recommendations on Asian big cats adopted at CoP16 and at SC65. Good practices will be highlighted, such as a transnational intelligence-led Operation PAWS II (Protection of Asian Wildlife Species II) initiated by INTERPOL, and India’s legislative framework to prevent Asian big cat parts and derivatives from entering into illegal trade and to manage disposal of specimens from Asian big cats. A set of draft decisions and recommendations to CoP17 will be considered by the Committee, including enforcement measures to disrupt and dismantle the criminal groups involved in trafficking in Asian big cat specimens, the impacts of domestic and international trade in Asian big cat specimens on wild population, captive breeding of Asian big cats and stockpile management.
Cheetah
The first comprehensive study of the global legal and illegal trade in cheetahs, presented to SC65, identified illegal trade as one of the main challenges facing cheetah, a CITES Appendix I species since 1975. Eastern Africa is the region with the highest recorded levels of illegal trafficking in live cheetahs, with the Gulf States being the primary destination. The Standing Committee working group on cheetah has gathered further information from 33 Parties and convened a cheetah workshop in Kuwait in November 2015. Public awareness, enhanced cooperation in law enforcement between East Africa and the Middle East, cooperation on the disposal of confiscated live cheetahs and development of capacity building tools are identified as main solutions to address the issues. The working group is proposing a set of recommendations and draft decisions to CoP17.
Export of Grey parrots from DRC
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is currently the range State with the largest volume of exports of wild-sourced grey parrots. According to trade records reported by importing countries, DRC has exceeded the annual export quota for various consecutive years. There are no recent scientific studies on the status of the DRC populations of grey parrot, which can provide a science base for the establishment of quotas. There are however suggestions that the populations are declining. Furthermore, there exists an alarmingly high rate of mortality (50% or higher) in domestic transport before the export takes place.
In the light of the current situation, the Standing Committee is asked to consider a recommendation for all Parties to suspend commercial trade in grey parrots from DRC until all the concerns and recommendations have been sufficiently addressed.
Pangolins
All Pangolin species (four Asian and four African species) were included Appendix II of CITES in 1994. Since 2000, there has been a zero annual quota for Asian pangolin species. Illegal trade in pangolin specimens is a growing international problem not only affecting Asian pangolin range States, but also those in Africa. A Working Group on Pangolins has been working to formulate recommendations to address the illegal trade in pangolin species, including on monitoring and management, legislation, enforcement, stockpile management, captive breeding, awareness raising, education and demand management. The Working Group will report on its work at SC66.
Snakes
Snakes are bred in high numbers in certain countries to supply the demand for food, skins and pets. The harvesting of snakes, and in some cases the processing of their skins and other body parts, is of economic importance and contributes important revenue to local communities. However, unregulated or unsustainable trade in snakes can pose a significant threat to wild snake populations, and international cooperation is needed to address these threats. In this light, the Standing Committee will consider the drafting of a Resolution on the conservation, sustainable use of and trade in snakes, based on the latest scientific findings. The Committee will also start developing guidance for traceability systems for snakeskins
Sharks
The cooperation between CITES and the fisheries sector has increased greatly as a result of the listing of five new commercially valuable species of sharks and all manta rays at the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (Bangkok 2013). CITES Parties, the public sector as well as the CITES Secretariat, through an EU-CITES funded project, have undertaken a tremendous collective effort to ensure the successful implementation of the listings of these enigmatic species. The capacity building activities of the Secretariat to assist Parties in implementing the new shark listings were recently recognized by the UN General Assembly in its annual resolution on Sustainable Fisheries.
The upcoming Standing Committee was asked by the CITES Animals Committee to discuss several legal, regulatory and enforcement related elements of the new shark listings, among them the traceability of shark products in trade. The Secretariat, in support of this work, commissioned two studies, which are now available on the CITES Sharks Portal.
Traceability
The CITES community has recently seen many references of the need to develop and implement traceability systems, including marking, labelling and tagging systems, through different discussions on species and related issues. These include snakes, queen conch, timber, sharks, and crocodiles, to name a few. The separate emergence of discussions on these species seem to indicate an increasing recognition by the Parties of the need to strengthen the supply chain for specimens of CITES-listed species in international trade.
The importance of traceability, in general, is widely recognized in many different commodity sectors, such as in agri-foods. Many stakeholders already work on developing various systems, standards, and governance of traceability, and a careful consideration is needed to ensure that Parties are able to choose the option that suits them, while avoiding any duplication of efforts.
Delegates will consider whether the issue of traceability of CITES-listed species in international trade could be better defined and consolidated, so as to provide a holistic guidance on the development and implementation of traceability systems for different species and different market chains.
Capacity building
The term ‘capacity building’ is generally used to cover the activities that support the Parties’ enhanced implementation of the Convention. CITES capacity-building activities span across many different countries and regions, and involve a multitude of donors, implementers, experts, and beneficiaries – not all of them are necessarily known to the wider CITES community. Delegates will review whether the range of instructions related to capacity building in the current CITES Resolutions and Decisions could be further rationalized, so that the provision of assistance and exchange of experiences could be improved and the needs of developing country Parties could be better met.
Nigeria’s health minister, Dr. Isaac Adewole, has said that the government is taking adequate measures to contain the outbreak of Lassa fever that has killed 35 people in seven states since November.
Dr. Isaac Adewole
The minister urged Nigerians not to panic over the outbreak, with 14 lab-confirmed cases among 76 suspected ones.
Lassa, named after a Nigerian town where the acute viral hemorrhagic fever first was identified in 1969, has the same symptoms as Ebola and also requires that health workers wear protective gear and patients be isolated. Only about 1 percent of patients die. The disease is carried by rats and mostly affects rural communities with poor sanitation or crowded living conditions. It is only found in West Africa.
In a statement at the weekend, Adewole appealed to members of the public to be calm.
Lassa fever or Lassa hemorrhagic fever (LHF) is an acute viralhemorrhagic fever caused by the Lassa virus and first described in 1969 in the town of Lassa, in Borno State, Nigeria. Lassa fever is a member of the Arenaviridaevirus family. Similar to ebola, clinical cases of the disease had been known for over a decade, but had not been connected with a viral pathogen.
Lassa frequently infects people in West Africa. It results in 300,000 to 500,000 cases annually and causes about 5,000 deaths each year. Outbreaks of the disease have been observed in Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, and the Central African Republic. The primary animal host of the Lassa virus is the Natal multimammate mouse (Mastomys natalensis), an animal found in most of sub-Saharan Africa. The virus is probably transmitted by contact with the feces or urine of animals accessing grain stores in residences. Given its high rate of incidence, Lassa fever is a major problem in affected countries.
The President of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP), Malachy Agbo, has been appointed the Chairman of the Caretaker Committee of Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of Enugu State.
Malachy Agbo. Photo credit: theeagleonline.com.ng
Agbo, alongside 16 others were appointed by the Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, on Thursday.
Ugwuanyi immediately inaugurated the chairmen and their deputies on Thursday.
Others appointed alongside Agbo as chairmen of the state’s 17 local government councils include Prof. Rose Onah, Nsukka; Ekwe Chidi, Aninri; Igwe Isaac Chukwudi, Enugu North; Sunday Ugwu, Enugu South; and Fred Ezenwa, Ezeagu.
Others are Uwake Ezeja, Igboeze North; Fidelis Odoh, Igboeze South; and Benjamin Edeoga, Isiuzo.
Speaking at their inauguration on Thursday, Ugwuanyi charged the chairmen to live within their respective council areas.
He said they should brace themselves for a governance style embedded in strict fiscal discipline in view of the peculiar situations confronting each of their council areas.
Emphasising the imperative of the new helmsmen domiciling in their local government council areas, the governor told them that the era of running the local government system from hotels was over in the state.
He reminded them that government and the people of Enugu State expected good results from them.
He thanked the outgone chairmen and the councillors for the service they rendered in their respective capacities, wishing them well in their future endeavours.
Governor Ugwuanyi also thanked the heads of personnel management of local governments in the state and treasurers in the council areas for their services during the period under review.
He disclosed that the swearing-in of caretaker councilors would take place on January 11, 2016 at the various local government council areas by the local government council caretaker chairmen.
Governor Ugwuanyi retained three of the local government council chairmen.
They are Prince Cornelius Nnaji of Enugu East Local Government Area, Afam Okereke of Nkanu West Local Government Area and Cornnel Onwubuya of Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area.
Earlier in a speech, the state Commissioner for Local Government, Chief Chijioke Edeoga, thanked Governor Ugwuanyi for constituting an amiable team made up of people with pedigree and integrity.
Edeoga said: “When you look at the team that assembled here, dear governor, the outcome validates your sleepless night before their selection.”
The commissioner called on the appointees to be mindful of their obligations in their various council areas.
He gave them insights of what they are expected to meet in their various council areas in respect of duties, responsibilities and financial debts.
Speaking on behalf of the sworn-in caretaker council chairmen and their deputies, Onah thanked the governor for finding them worthy to serve the state.
She said: “The chairmen and the deputies are very grateful to you for finding us worthy to occupy this seat of responsibilities and to contribute our own quota to your administration towards the growth and development of Enugu State.”
Onah promised that they would not betray Ugwuanyi but will strive to promote the good and aspirations of the state.
She added that in spite of the current enormous financial challenges in the country, their selection was something to thank God for as they were chosen among many contenders.
She observed that the challenges of local government councils in respect of financing in the state is enormous, adding that she had also heard about bailout, reminding the governor of the need to bail them out.
She promised the readiness of the team to strive towards pulling the local government system up and out of problems and odds.
