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Implementation framework 2010-2014 for the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2007 (NBSAP) : Fiji Islands

This report was compiled in collaboration with all necessary stakeholders from key Government sectors and NGO’s.

Records of CITES trade permitted by the Management Authority during 2007 are provided. Permits for live coral and live rock were issued by the Department of Fisheries Licensing Unit with endorsement from the Fiji Islands CITES Management Authority. CITES documents were issued in accordance with Fiji's national implementing legislation (Endangered and Protected Species (EPS) Act (2002)) and CITES obligations.

In the promotion of environmentally sound and sustainable development, it is indispensable to establish the necessary legal and institutional arrangements such that environmental factors are considered at the early stages of project planning. Environmental assessment is an important technique for ensuring that the likely impacts on the environment of proposed developments are fully understood and taken into account before such developments is allowed to proceed.

The National Capacity Self Assessment for Global Environment Management (NCSA) is a tool to help the government of Tonga to assess its current level of capacity to meet its obligations under the UNCBD, UNFCCC and UNCCD. Implicit in this is the notion that, with a little guidance and the right tools, the agencies and organizations with direct responsibilities for implementing Tonga’s obligations under the conventions will be capable of self reflecting and identifying their own strengths and weaknesses to meet these obligations. This then becomes the starting point for intentional organizational improvement initiatives which should, in turn, allow adequate planning for future growth and development that capitalizes on current strengths while addressing current limitations. The National Capacity Self-Assessment Project is a Global Environment Facility (GEF) initiative supported by the UNDP Country Office in Fiji and implemented by the Department of Environment. The project document was prepared and endorsed by the Government of Tonga in November 2004. The NCSA was initiated in September 2005 with the recruitment of the NCSA project management unit staff.

Early settlers brought in animals (e.g. cattle, pigs, goats, cats, chickens and dogs) for food, pets and hunters for their survivals. Some of the animals were not well managed that they become wild (feral) and become problems. Feral pigs, cattle, goats tramp and graze on forest plants and garden crops that may result in desertification in some areas. Their manure deposits in water cause algal growth that makes water bodies look dirty. Feral and domesticated cats and dogs kill native birds, reptiles and insects, which leads to great loss of native wild life throughout the islands.

The objective of the UNFCCC is to stabilise the concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere at levels that prevent dangerous interference with the world's climate. This should be done within a time frame that will allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, to ensure food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner.