The History of the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds Its development and implementation in the period 1985-2000, within the broader context of waterbird and wetlands conservation by Dr. Gerard C. Boere The History of the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds Its development and implementation in the period 1985-2000, within the broader context of waterbird and wetlands conservation. by Dr. Gerard C. Boere UNEP / AEWA Secretariat, Bonn, Germany. 148 pages. Author: Dr. Gerard C. Boere; Honorary Patron of AEWA. Produced by: UNEP/AEWA Secretariat Editing & Proof Reading: Robert Vagg Scans of reports, books, documents, and photos: Dr. Gerard C. Boere Design: Florian Keil, Nikolas Pankau, Dunia Sforzin Printing: in puncto druck+medien GmbH © 2010 United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)/Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA). ISBN 978-3-9813731-2-7 This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and in any form for educational or non-profit purposes without special permission from the copyright holder, provided acknowledgement of the source is made. UNEP would appreciate receiving a copy of any publication that uses this publication as a source. No use of this publication may be made for resale or for any other commercial purpose whatsoever without prior permission in writing from the United Nations Environment Programme. DISCLAIMER The contents of this volume do not necessarily reflect the views of UNEP, the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat or contributory organizations. The designations employed and the presentations do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNEP or contributory organizations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area in its authority, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Copies of this publication are available from the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat United Nations Premises in Bonn Hermann-Ehlers-Str. 10 53113 Bonn, Germany Tel (+49 228) 815 2414 Fax (+49 228) 815 2450 E-mail: [email protected] www.unep-aewa.org Image front page: Participants of the First Consultative Meeting on the development of AEWA, 12-14 June 1994 at the UNEP premises in Nairobi, Kenya (Photo: UNEP). 2 The History of the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds Its development and implementation in the period 1985-2000, within the broader context of waterbird and wetlands conservation by Dr. Gerard C. Boere Published by the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat on the occasion of the 15th Anniversary of the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) in June 2010 3 Great White Pelicans, Pelecanus onocrotalus (Photo: Sergey Dereliev (UNEP/AEWA)). Contents Forewords ............................................................................................................................................................... 7 Introduction, rationale and acknowledgements ..................................................................................................... 10 1. Historical background and the broader perspective of waterbird and wetland conservation in Eurasia - Africa .............................................................................................................................. 13 2. Steps towards the development of the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA); the development process over time ...................................................................................... 27 2.1. The First Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CMS (COP1) in 1985 ..................................... 28 2.2. The AEWA development process and other activities between CMS COP1 (October 1985) and CMS COP2 (October 1988) ............................................................................................................... 30 2.3. Further progress in the period 1989 to 1993; developing the WPWA and its Annexes into a more definitive format ...................................................................................................................... 33 2.3.1. Meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Western Palearctic Waterfowl Agreement, 6 and 7 February 1990, The Hague, the Netherlands .............................................. 39 2.3.2. The period after the Ad Hoc Working Group meeting of February 1990 until the end of 1993 ..................................................................................................................... 45 2.3.3. Other countries and regions stimulating the development of AEWA in the period 1990-1994 ............................................................................................................... 52 2.4. Informal Negotiation Meeting on the draft Agreement text of AEWA, 12-14 June 1994, Nairobi, Kenya .............................................................................................................. 53 2.5. The formal Negotiation Meeting, June 1995, The Hague, the Netherlands ....................................... 57 2.6. Interim Secretariat period 1 January 1996 – 1 January 2000 and the First Session of the Meeting of the Parties (MOP1) in November 1999 ............................................................................. 64 2.6.1. Development, since 1989, of special contacts with the USSR/Russian Federation/Arctic region as one of the main breeding areas for migratory waterbirds and its involvement during the development process of the Agreement ..................................................................... 64 2.6.2. Development and activities of the Interim Secretariat from 1 January 1996 onwards ....... 69 2.6.3. Organization of AEWA MOP1 ............................................................................................. 73 2.7. After AEWA MOP1, November 1999, Cape Town, South Africa ........................................................ 78 3. Final remarks ...................................................................................................................................................... 81 Annex 1. Notes added to the text ........................................................................................................................... 82 Annex 2. List of Acronyms ...................................................................................................................................... 115 Annex 3. Selected original documents .................................................................................................................. 117 5 African Spoonbills, Platalea alba (Photo: Sergey Dereliev (UNEP/AEWA)). Foreword by Bert Lenten, Executive Nature and Food Quality (LNV) and Secretary of AEWA author of this book, Dr. Gerard C. Boere for all their tireless efforts to In Dutch we have a saying something negotiate AEWA. Furthermore, I like this: ‘he who does not know his would also like to take this opportunity past does not have a future’. This to thank the Government of the expression makes clear that lessons Netherlands and in particular LNV for learned in the past will prevent you their substantial support to the whole from making the same mistakes in the process of developing an Agreement future. for the African-Eurasian Flyways. This Ministry made it possible for Dr. Boere The book before you is meant to give to spend a great part of his time on an overview of the history of AEWA. this subject. While reading the initial text I came to the conclusion that drafting an At the beginning of January 1996 Agreement like AEWA is something I was appointed by the LNV as that does not happen overnight. Executive Secretary of the Interim Particularly consulting all major Secretariat of AEWA, which was stakeholders is very time consuming. based at the Ministry in The Hague. Sometimes little progress could be Since then I have had the pleasure made at a certain time due to reasons to work on the implementation unknown. The author assumes that and further development of the some stakeholders were not interested Agreement. Looking back a great deal at all in finalizing this Agreement. I has been achieved due to support believe that the ten years or so that it received from many Contracting took to draft and conclude AEWA was and Non-Contracting Parties and not a waste of time. On the contrary Partner Organizations, for which the this time has made it possible for all Secretariat is very grateful. Hopefully major stakeholders to be ready to we can count on all of you to support ‘embark on AEWA’ and to conclude the implementation of the Agreement the Agreement during the final in the years to come because much Negotiation Meeting which took place more has to be done to reverse from 14 to 16 June 1995, at the Ministry the decline of many populations of of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. migratory waterbird species. We are still not there. Not having been involved in the drafting and consultation process myself, I would like to thank Bert Lenten particularly the former Executive Secretary of the Convention on Migratory Species, Mr Arnulf Müller- Helmbrecht and former Senior Policy Officer of the Ministry of Agriculture, 7 A view on AEWA by one of its UN Stockholm Conference on founding fathers: Dr. Eugeniusz the Human Environment. The Nowak German Government took the lead in developing such an My involvement in the development instrument which was concluded of an international instrument for the in 1979. During the same