81 local governments to gather for biodiversity

Gangwon Province will host a biodiversity summit of municipal governments from Oct. 13-14 as a sideline event of the 12th meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity, which is underway in Pyeongchang.

As part of the international community’s efforts to further the conservation of biological diversity (genetic, species and ecosystem variation), the summit is designed to identify the role of local governments in accomplishing global biodiversity goals.

“The number of participants will reach about 800. These include heads of local governments from 81 cities worldwide and related international organizations,” said an official of the Secretariat of the United Nations Biodiversity Conference 2014.

The key speakers include Gangwon Province Gov. Choi Moon-soon, CBD executive secretary Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias and Vice Minister of Environment Jeong Yeon-man.

A key task is to secure collaboration between the local and central governments of each country.

The official said that conclusions and decisions at the summit would be included in the coming “Gangwon-Pyeongchang Declaration” during the high-level meeting, slated for Oct. 15-16.

The declaration to be adopted is also likely to detail ways to cooperate on the conservation of worldwide border areas, including the demilitarized zone between the two Koreas.

The 12th meeting, which will run through Oct. 17, is scheduled to undertake a mid-term review of the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020. Further, it will develop a road map, dubbed the Pyeongchang Road Map, for the enhanced implementation of the Strategic Plan.

Local officials say that the road map will include enhanced mechanisms for technical and scientific cooperation, capacity-building, financial resources, and the integration of biodiversity into development plans and other national processes.

By Kim Yon-se (kys@heraldcorp.com)