Marine Turtles in Africa MoU

The Memorandum of Understanding concerning Conservation Measures for Marine Turtles of the Atlantic Coast of Africa was concluded under Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) auspices and became effective on 1 July 1999. It will remain open for signature indefinitely. It aims at safeguarding six marine turtle species that are estimated to have rapidly declined in numbers during recent years due to excessive exploitation (both direct and incidental) and the degradation of essential habitats.

Species, protected by the Memorandum

A hawksbill turtle.

The list of turtle species, currently protected by the Memorandum, is the following ^[1]:

• Loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta
• Olive ridley turtle Lepidochelys olivacea
• Kemp's Ridley Lepidochelys kempii
• Hawksbill turtle Eretmochelys imbricata
• Leatherback turtle Dermochelys coriacea
• Green turtle Chelonia mydas
• The White TurtleJeffery Thomas

Territory of the Memorandum

The MoU covers coastal areas extending some 14,000 km from Morocco to South Africa including Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Portugal (Azores, Madeira), São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Spain (Canary Islands), Togo and United Kingdom (Ascension Island, St. Helena). An up-to-date list of the MoU's Signatories is found in its Agreement Summary Sheet.

Signatories of the Memorandum

countries and territories, which have already signed the Memorandum, are ^[2]:

• Angola
• Azores (Portugal)
• Benin
• Cameroon
• Canary Islands (Spain)
• Republic of the Congo
• Côte d'Ivoire
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Equatorial Guinea
• Gabon
• Gambia
• Ghana
• Guinea
• Guinea (Bissau)
• Liberia
• Madeira (Portugal)
• Mauritania
• Morocco
• Namibia
• Nigeria
• São Tomé and Príncipe
• Senegal
• Sierra Leone
• South Africa
• Togo

The Conservation Plan

In May 2002 Conservation Plan was concluded in Nairobi. It was focused on the database of turtle ecology establishment, which includes distribution and migration patterns of turtles into it and on the threats to them – like the nature and extent of direct exploitation, by-catch rate, impact of coastal management, pollution and others. The idea of the project is to create a network to monitor and to protect nesting and feeding sites and to collaborate collaboration with local communities, fishermen, travel operators and coastal developers. The "Nairobi Declaration", which was a result of the meeting, attracted the attention to the marine turtle by-catch in industrial fishing operations and emphasized importance of local communities in conservation activities development and implementation.It also encouraged links with other conventions, intergovernmental bodies and NGOs, and sought the integration of marine turtle conservation measures within the emerging African Process for the Development and Protection of the Marine and Coastal Environment in Sub-Saharan Africa.^[1]

Various activities

CMS has funded a project, which started in 2001 and was successfully concluded in 2003, aimed at uncovering the migratory patterns of the Green Turtle population nesting at Poilão, Guinea-Bissau. In 2005, CMS and the Senegalese Ministry of the Environment signed a Memorandum of Cooperation. An office was established in Senegal in conjunction with the environmental programme of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (SINEPAD). SINEPAD, working on behalf of the CMS Secretariat, will act as the MoU's coordinator. It is tasked with implementing diverse conservation and sustainable use activities related to the MoU.^[1]

See also

• Convention on Migratory Species
• Marine Turtles in Indian Ocean and South East Asia MoU
• Sea turtles

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} CMS official web-site
2. ^ CMS official web-site. Text of the MoU

External links

• Text of the MoU