Reports/Assessments

South China Sea Project Knowledge Document on Fisheries Refugia

The South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand is a global centre of shallow water marine biological diversity, supporting a significant world fishery that is important to the food security of, and as a source of export income for, Southeast Asian countries. Landings from this area contribute approximately 10 percent of reported global fisheries production per annum and make significant contributions to the economies, of countries bordering the Gulf of Thailand and the South China Sea. The majority of fisheries are small-scale in nature, and fish are landed in a large number of decentralised locations for distribution through complex marketing networks at the community level. As a consequence estimates of fisheries production are considered to be gross underestimates and do not adequately reflect the importance of the artisanal or subsistence production to the fisheries sector as a whole.

South China Sea Knowledge Document on the Procedures for the Selection of Habitat Demonstration Sites

The GEF allocation for demonstration sites was stated in the Project Brief and noted by the project Steering Committee during its’ first meeting (UNEP, 2000a, Appendix) as 3 demonstration sites in each of the habitat sub-components of Mangroves, Coral Reefs and Seagrass. The size of each allocation for demonstration sites, by habitat sub-component was as follows: Mangroves: 1.2 million US$ over 3 years Coral Reefs: 1.2 million US$ over 3 years Seagrass: 1.1 million US$ over 3 years Wetlands4: no allocation

Procedure for Determination of National and Regional Economic Values for Ecotone Goods and Services, and Total Economic Values of Coastal Habitats

During the initial project development phase from 1996 to 1999, a framework Strategic Action Programme (SAP) was developed that not only formed the basis for the GEF approval of the project but was also somewhat innovative in including a cost benefit analysis of the benefits of action compared with non-action (UNEP, 1999). The challenge facing the SCS project in 1999 was that the only "ecosystem values" readily available were those of Costanza et al. (1997) that were based on global data and have subsequently been challenged on both economic and scientific grounds. The Project Steering Committee, composed solely of participating government representatives, in approving the draft SAP and the SCS GEF Project, insisted not only that the project activities include the revision of the SAP but also the determination of regionally applicable economic values for environmental goods and services.

Managing Multi-Lateral, Intergovernmental Projects and Programmes

The management of comprehensive and extensive, multi-lateral and multi-national programmes and projects in the field of coastal and ocean management poses numerous organisational problems encompassing co-ordination between the actions of individual participating countries and interventions that are designed to address issues as diverse as: biological diversity conservation and sustainable use; fisheries management; maritime transport; and the control of land based pollution. Whilst the substantive issues and problems that are to be addressed during project implementation are generally well analysed and the potential solutions are generally identified based on sound scientific knowledge and information, less attention is all too frequently paid to the management structure that will ensure coherence and co-ordination of the interventions once the programme or project is under implementation.