2006 Press Releases
Press Release
Wetlands as a tool for poverty alleviation
February 02, 2006
The United States Ambassador to Cameroon, H.E. Niels Marquardt will preside over a roundtable discussion on the theme, “Wetlands as a tool for poverty alleviation”, on Thursday, February 02, 2006 at 09:00 a.m at the US Embassy premises in Bastos.
The roundtable to be attended by senior government officials and representatives of international conservation bodies is organized under the auspices of the USAID supported Central African Regional Programme for Environment –CARPE- to mark “World Wetlands Day.”
CARPE activities take place in 12 key biodiversity landscapes in seven countries – Rwanda, Congo/Brazzaville, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon – plus cross-cutting activities in two additional countries – Rwanda and Sao Tome-Principe – comprising an area of more than 70 million hectares.
World Westland’s day is commemorated annually on February 02, to mark the anniversary of the adaption of the Ramsar Convention on the protection of Wetlands in 1971.
Discussions during the roundtable will centre on conservation and sustainable management of biodiversity and ecosystems, particularly wetlands, to fight poverty. Experts will equally focus on effective forest and wildlife law enforcement in respect of national and international legislations and declarations such as: the convention on biological diversity (CBD), the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Wildlife Species (CITES) and the Africa Forest Law Enforcement and Governance (AFLEG) declaration.
Conservation bodies expected to take an active part in the roundtable include: the World Conservation Union (IUCN), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), World Agro forestry Centre (ICRAF), and Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR).
For more information, please contact the Public Affairs Section, US Embassy, Yaoundé, Cameroon. Tel. 220-15-00.