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..Press
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UNESCAP News Services
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Date 14
May 2005
Press Release No: L/17/2007
SG/SM/9868; ENV/DEV/852; OBV/484
Role of biodiversity central in underpinning
sustainable development, protecting society, says UN Secretary-General
in message for international day
Following is the text of the message by UN Secretary-General
Kofi Annan for the International Day for Biological Diversity,
22 May 2005:
The theme of this year’s International Day
for Biological Diversity, “Biodiversity: Life Insurance
for our Changing World”, reminds us of the central role
of biodiversity in underpinning sustainable development, and
in protecting society from the consequences of unexpected shocks
such as water shortages, the emergence of infectious diseases,
extreme weather events, and the genetic vulnerability of crops
and livestock.
In recent decades, economic development and technological
advancement have helped to improve living conditions for many
of the world’s people, and to lift some of the poorest
members of the human family from absolute poverty. Yet over
that same period, unsustainable patterns of production and consumption
have reduced the biological diversity of life on our planet
more than at any other time in history, threatening the capacity
of ecosystems to sustain the economic advances humankind has
struggled to achieve.
According to the synthesis report of the recently
released Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, virtually all ecosystems
on the planet have been transformed by human activities. For
example:
-- 25 per cent of commercially exploited marine
fish stocks are over-harvested, leading to the closure of many
fisheries with significant socio-economic consequences;
-- Changes in land cover, in particular tropical
deforestation and desertification, tend to reduce local rainfall
and contribute to desertification and water shortages;
-- The capacity of ecosystems to mitigate the
effects of extreme weather events such as the recent tsunami
in the Indian Ocean has been reduced as a result of the conversion
of wetlands, forests and mangroves.
The report of the Millennium Project issued in
January offers a number of practical proposals for reaching
the internationally agreed goal of significantly reducing the
rate of biodiversity loss by the year 2010. Market mechanisms,
policy reforms, improved regulations and investments in the
management of critical ecosystems must be part of the picture;
these can also foster progress towards other Millennium Development
Goals. It is therefore of utmost importance that Governments
implement the Convention on Biological Diversity and provide
additional financial and other resources for that purpose.
Biodiversity provides the materials we need for
food, clothing and shelter. It helps to ensure health, and contributes
to human well-being in many other ways. Halting its degradation
and loss, and ensuring the equitable use of genetic resources,
will require a host of new and stronger actions at all levels.
The September Summit of the General Assembly offers another
critical opportunity for Heads of State and Government to put
in place the political and financial commitments to conserve
and sustainably use the foundation for life itself. But let
us all reaffirm that commitments today, on this International
Day for Biological Diversity
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