By Faridat Salifu
In a compelling call to action on the global biodiversity crisis, Dr. Iziak Adekunle Salako, Nigeria’s Minister of State for the Environment, has emphasized the urgent need for a more ambitious international response to protect marine biodiversity.
Addressing the ECOWAS Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Coordinating meeting in Abuja on Monday, he underscored that only 7% of the world’s oceans are currently protected, highlighting the absence of comprehensive legal mechanisms to safeguard the high seas and the deep seabed areas.
Dr. Salako urged the international community to designate 30% of land and ocean areas as protected by 2030 and to conclude a robust new high-seas treaty.
He stressed the critical importance of halting human-induced extinction of wild species and the necessity of establishing fully and highly protected areas to prohibit environmentally damaging activities.
Highlighting Nigeria’s commitment to this cause, Dr. Salako mentioned the symbolic signing of a commitment to ratify the BBNJ treaty and the rallying efforts to secure consensus among the 55 member States of the African Union to support ratifying the high-seas treaty.
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He emphasized the urgency of prompt ratification and the need for ECOWAS to lead the way in this direction.
Emphasizing the shared responsibility to protect the oceans, Dr. Salako called for collective action to prevent the catastrophic consequences of failing to act.
He urged participants to work together to make swift progress towards setting a path for prompt ratification of the high-seas treaty in the ECOWAS region and on the African continent.
Moussa Leko, the Director of the Environment Department at ECOWAS, echoed the need for robust action to protect biodiversity, emphasizing the vital importance of preserving ecosystem services and the livelihood of local communities.
He called for expanded coordination to ensure the ECOWAS region has the necessary tools to implement an ambitious Global Biodiversity Framework and a comprehensive CITES agenda.
The combined efforts of Nigeria and ECOWAS showcase a strong commitment to safeguarding marine biodiversity and provide a compelling call to action for an ambitious global response to the urgent biodiversity crisis.
