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Nairobi Convention Background
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Introduction
The Eastern African Action Plan,
also referred to as the Nairobi Convention, and
its related Protocols, was adopted in 1985. It
was designed to address the following issues:
- To promote environmentally sound
sustainable development and management of marine
and coastal systems in the region
- To establish objectives, policies and legislation
for the protection of the marine and coastal
environment on a national and regional level
- To prevent pollution of the coastal environment
from activities within the States of the region
or from operations primarily subjet to jurisdiction
of non-coastal States, to monitor pollutants,
their sources, levels and effects,
- To provide for protection and rational development
of coastal and marine resources,
- To strengthen and encourage regional collaboration
among institutions involved in the study of
marine and coastal resources
- To improve training and technical assistance
in the development and management of marine
and coastal system, to stimulate growth of public
awareness of the value and fragility of the
coastal systems, and
- To assist countries respond to maritime emergencies
or marine pollution incidents which threaten
the environment or local people.
A meeting of experts selected by their Governments
(Seychelles, September 1982) prepared the first
draft of an action plan, identified problems to
be tackled as priorities, and invited UNEP to
help in solving them without waiting for the formal
adoption of the action plan. The workshop participants
named 10 first priority regional projects which
UNEP and United Nations agencies were asked to
initiate during 1983. They included work on developing
a network of environmental pollution laboratories,
on providing training facilities for environmental
control technicians, and on developing a network
of oil pollution monitoring centres. Two other
priority projects were concerned with assessment
of the environmental impact of economic and social
developments and a regional environmental education
programme.
In 1985 the Conference of Plenipotentiaries on
the Protection, Management and Development of
the Marine and Coastal Environment of the Eastern
African Region was held in Nairobi, to adopt the
Action Plan, Convention and the associated protocols.
The Nairobi Convention is part
of the Regional Seas Programme. The programme
aims to strengthen the role of the Regional Seas
conventions and Action plans as platforms for
promoting synergies and coordinated implementation
of global and regional initiatives for the protection
of the marine and coastal environment.
Today all ten Eastern African
countries have ratified the Convention: Comoros,
France (La Reunion), Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius,
Mozambique, Seychelles, Somalia and Tanzania and
South Africa. Following a regional workshop in
Zanzibar (6-9 October 1997) the GPA has produced
a regional overview and action plan on land-based
pollution. Among its activities: to assess pollution
loads affecting the marine environment, and their
harmful effects; to set up monitoring programmes
and development strategies; prepare and implement
a regional action plan; and strengthen capacity
of coastal States to intervene in case of accidents
and emergencies.
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