Outcomes of the Intergovernmental Meeting on Great Apes and First GRASP Council
Meeting, 5-9 September 2005, Grand Hotel, Kinshasa,
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Kinshasa Declaration on Great Apes
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S.E. João José Martins Lopes de Carvalho, Ministre de l’Agriculture et du Développement Rural, Guinée-Bissau signs the Declaration |
Perhaps the most important document adopted at the meeting is the Kinshasa Declaration on Great Apes,
a high-level political statement on the future of great apes
. By signing this declaration, the 76 representatives - including 16 range states, 6 donor countries, 25 NGO Partners, 2 Multi lateral Environemtal Agreements and 2 intergovernmental organizations - affirmed their will to protect the great apes for the first time in the history of great apes
in part through;
- affirming their commitment to the GRASP Global Strategy and to support, and for the range states, implement, effective measures to counter the threats facing the great apes;
- emphasizing the need to stimulate and enhance range state cooperation to ensure the effective enforcement of great ape legislation and coordinated efforts to halt activities that have a detrimental effect on great ape populations;
- emphasizing the role of national and international measures and participation in regional initiatives, and encourage ratification and compliance with international treaties such as the biodiversity and conservation-related Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs);
- urging development and implementation of National Great Ape Survival Plans (NGASPs) by the range states;
- urging GRASP Partners and others to support range states in the implementation of their NGASPs;
- encouraging the provision of long-term ecologically sustainable economic benefits to local communities;
- inviting international institutions and agencies to prioritize policies promoting ecologically sustainable livelihoods for local and indigenous communities which prevent activities detrimental to the survival of the great apes;
- reaffirming their commitment to ensure GRASP has the capacity to realize its full potential;
- resolving to set the target of securing a constant and significant reduction in the current loss of great ape populations by 2010 and to secure the future of all species and subspecies of great apes in the wild by 2015; and
- inviting the international community to provide effective and coherent support, including funding, to assist efforts made by the great ape range states.
See below for the full text of the Kinshasa Declaration on Great Apes.
If your country, institution or organization wishes to sign the Kinshasa Declaration, and has not yet done so, please download the signing template, sign and return to grasp@unep.org or fax to +254 20 62 43 00. In case you are unable to download the template, please email grasp@unep.org and request a hardcopy for you to sign and return. |
