3 February
A ceremony to commemorate the World Wetlands Day 2020, with a motto of “Conserve the wetlands towards sustainable biodiversity”, was held at a resort in the Moeyungyi Wildlife Sanctuary, Bago Region yesterday morning.
Union Minister for Natural Resources and Environment Conservation U Ohn Win spoke on the occasion that the existence of biodiversity and sustainability of wetlands are correlated. If the wetlands will remain undamaged, the bio diversities living in them will exist sustainably. The 2020 motto reflects the sustainability of natural resources and biodiversities, and its relevant ecosystem contributions. Myanmar has commemorated the World Wetlands Day at the national level since 2012, each in Nay Pyi Taw, Moeyungyi, and Inle Lake previously. This is the fourth event.
All these commemorative events indicate the wetlands provide goods and services upon people, then those related to them will in a greater collaboration conserve, manage, and make better use of the wetlands. They support sustainability of biodiversities as well as water resources. They are the key source of livelihood both for endangered species and native species. They defend climate change and enhance ecosystem which provides sustainable development for the people. They also provide socioeconomic benefits in agriculture, livestock, transportation, electricity and tourism industries.
Myanmar signed and became a member of the Ramsar Convention on 17 March 2005. The Forestry Department holds the responsibility to conserve and manage the wetlands in accordance with the convention. Five wetlands in Myanmar have been designated as the internationally important sites: They are the Moeyungyi Wildlife Sanctuary of 2004, the Indawgyi Wildlife Sanctuary in 2016, the Meinmahla Kyun Wildlife Sanctuary and part of Gulf of Mottama in 2017, and Inle Lake in 2018. In order to accelerate the coordination and collaboration work between relevant departments, a nation-level committee was formed on 30 August 2016 to conserve, manage and make beneficial use of the wetlands. After drawing national policies and strategies on the wetlands, the committee is striving to implement them. It is necessary for all to work together to conserve biodiversities, reduce the damages and effects by climate change, and to tackle natural disasters as the wetlands are of significant importance, he concluded.
Next, Bago Region Chief Minister U Win Thein and Norway Environmental Agency Assistant Director-General Mr. Ivar Myklebust gave speeches.
Then, the Union Minister, the Region Chief Minister and officials gave awards to 12 high school and middle school students, who are outstanding in the essay competition, and 3 locals, who are collaborating in the conservation work. A certificate to designate the extension part of Mottama (Bago Region and Mon State) as the Ramsar Site was presented by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Conservation to the Bago regional government.
In the afternoon, a national committee meeting 1/2020 was held and the committee discussed the matters relating to the management and conservation of the wetlands in line with the national policies and strategies laid down. —MNA (Translated by Aungthu Ya)
