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25.11.2015 Science

Ghana hosts conference on Biosphere reserves

25.11.2015 LISTEN
By GNA

Accra, Nov. 25, GNA - The Fourth Session of the General Assembly of the African Network of Biosphere Reserves (AfriMAB) has opened in Accra with a call on countries to work towards preserving the world from the impact of global environmental challenges.

Mr Mahama Ayariga, the Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI), said African countries should rededicate themselves into restoring and purifying their biosphere reserves or ecosystems as part of their contribution towards reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to acceptable levels.

Mr Ayariga said this when he addressed a four-day conference being held on the theme: 'AfriMAB: Aligning the MAB Strategy (2015-2025) to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2015-2030'. It is being attended by participants from 24 African countries.

According to the Encyclopaedia of Earth, the biosphere is the biological component of earth systems, which also include the lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere and other "spheres" (e.g. cryosphere, anthrosphere, etc.).

The biosphere includes all living organisms on earth, together with the dead organic matter produced by them.

UNESCO and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are hosting the conference attended by biosphere reserves managers, scientists, lecturers, civil servants, policy makers, representatives of NGOs and local communities from 24 African countries.

The conference would discuss Africa's contribution towards the sustenance of human existence along the lines of the Sustainable Development Goals of (SDGs).

Participants would hold discussion on green economies, mining and ecological restoration and the formation of a technical working group to report to each General Assembly.

Mr Ayariga advised countries to also be committed to implementing their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCS) as presented ahead the 21 Conference of Parties on Climate Change to be held in Paris, France in December, once accepted and agreed upon at COP 21.

Mr Daniel Amlalo, the Executive Director of EPA and Chair of AFriMAB, said the conference was critical since it coincided with the preparation for the implementation of the SDGs as well as the preparation for the Fourth World Congress on Biosphere to be held in Lima, Peru, in March next year.

The meeting is, therefore, to enable member countries to orient themselves in readiness to attain the SDGs within the framework of the Lima Action Plan and also to prepare and present a common voice for the Lima Congress and the 20th Anniversary commemoration of AFriMAB in 2016.

He explained that in its 44 years of implementation, the MAB programme and its biosphere reserve concept had contributed to achieving sustainable development in Africa by addressing challenges associated with biodiversity conservation and natural resources management.

Mr Amlalo urged countries to continue to collaborate in dealing with issues 'such as climate change mitigation, improvement of zonation and functioning of our biosphere reserves and trans-boundary cooperation on shared resources'.

Nii Osah Mills, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, said Ghana's Bia Reserve in the Western Region and the Songhor Biosphere Reserve in the Greater Accra Region, both received support from the MAB programme while communities in those areas had been provided with alternative livelihoods.

Ghana has already submitted to UNESCO, a nomination dossier for the enlistment of Lake Bosomtwe and its catchment area as the country's third biosphere reserve.

Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, the Minister of Education, and Chairperson of the Ghana National Commission for UNESCO, urged the countries to make use of scientific research to fashion out mitigative and adaptative strategies to combat development challenges in order to achieve sustainable development.

'As we have transitioned into the SDGs, there is the clarion call on us to eradicate poverty and transform economies through Sustainable Development by 2030,' she said.

'This, we are expected to achieve through the three dimensions of sustainable development; economic, social, and environmental'.

Dr Neoline Rakotaarisa, the Sectional Head of MAB at UNESCO Africa Region, said as AfriMAB is marking its 20 anniversary in 2016, participating countries should work at developing a clear road map for the next 20 years.

The AFriMAB is the regional UNSECO Man and Biosphere Programme (MAB) network for Sub-Sahara Africa, which was created in Dakar, Senegal in 1996, during the Regional Conference for Forging Cooperation on Africa's Biosphere Reserves for Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Development.

GNA

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