Tiger Range Countries and partners make new conservation commitments in Thailand

WWF 29 Jan 10;

Hua Hin, Thailand – Governments from across Asia’s tiger range countries (TRCs) sent a powerful message that new efforts to save wild tigers from extinction would begin immediately and called for total protection of critical tiger habitats as the 1st Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation concluded today at the resort of Hua Hin, Thailand.

The Royal Government of Thailand hosted the meeting. Thailand’s Minister of Environment and Natural Resources Suwit Khunkitti pointed to commitments in the Hua Hin Declaration, and urged other TRCs to follow through with consolidated technical recommendations that resulted from an earlier meeting in Kathmandu on tiger conservation: “We shall reach up to the highest levels of our governments for support at the Year of the Tiger Heads of State Summit in Russia. Let us join together boldly to save the wild tiger.”

Thailand made a number of new commitments at the conference:

• Expansion of its SMART wildlife area patrolling program in its Western Forest Complex (WEFCOM) at Huai Kha Khaeng-Thung Yai
• Assistance to its neighbor countries to repatriate tigers when the population of tigers in WEFCOM and Kaeng Krachan/Kuiburi becomes large enough to act as a donor source
• Announcement that it would make funding for the ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network a permanent item in its budget

Seven ministers, along with senior delegations from 13 tiger range countries, gathered with top wildlife conservation experts and representatives from international organizations and donor institutions such as the World Bank, Global Tiger Initiative, WWF, Save the Tiger Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, USAID, FREELAND, and TRAFFIC, to energize the wildlife conservation agenda, update national action plans, and announce specific proposals to reverse the continuing decline of tiger populations.

President of the World Bank Group Robert B. Zoellick, who launched the Global Tiger Initiative (GTI) in June 2008 together with the Smithsonian Institution, Global Environment Facility, and other partners, delivered a video message to the ministers and delegations, promising support for the range countries’ efforts and to spearhead sustainable development in Asia: “The World Bank stands ready to support regional projects in the tiger range countries and to mobilize the donor community and develop innovative financial instruments to support tiger conservation funds.”

Populations of wild tigers have declined to only 3,200 worldwide, according to latest estimates, from 100,000 a century ago. The GTI is one of the drivers of the World Bank’s commitment to new strategies that balance economic development with nature conservation, biodiversity and environmental protection.

Another significant development in Thailand came from Prime Minister Vladmir Putin and the Government of the Russian Federation, who officially announced plans to host the Heads of State Summit in September.

The Hua Hin Declaration reflected agreement among the TRCs to redouble efforts on the ground to halt the decline of tigers and assist in recovery of habitats. An international donor conference is also planned later this year to support the countries to bring increased resources for integrated game-changing policy to save the species from extinction.

Michael Baltzer, Leader of WWF’s Tiger Initiative, said: “We are delighted to see a ray of hope for the tiger as represented by the tiger range countries’ commitment to work together to double wild tiger numbers by 2022. We look forward to seeing their pledges turn into firm actions in Vladivostok.”

All 13 tiger range countries were represented in Hua Hin. They include Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Asian countries pledge to double Tiger numbers by 2022
TRAFFIC 29 Jan 10;

Hua Hin, Thailand, 29 January 2009—Governments from across Asia sent a powerful message that renewed efforts to save wild Tigers from extinction would begin immediately and called for total protection of critical Tiger habitats as the 1st Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation concluded today at the resort of Hua Hin, Thailand.

Ministers and senior delegations from 13 Tiger range States—Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand, and Viet Nam—committed to implementing measures to double the number of wild Tigers by 2022.

The post-conference declaration includes pledges to protect wild Tigers and their prey from poaching through regular patrolling of Tiger habitats and elimination of national and cross-border trade in Tiger and Tiger parts as well as a commitment to support communities living in and around Tiger landscapes and minimize human-Tiger conflicts.

The countries also appealed for the commitment of international institutions to help finance and support the new conservation efforts.

“The World Bank stands ready to support regional projects in the tiger range countries and to mobilize the donor community and develop innovative financial instruments to support tiger conservation funds,” said World Bank President Robert B. Zoellick, in a video message to the conference.

The Royal Government of Thailand, who hosted the meeting, announced plans for increased patrolling of Tiger habitats in Thailand, assistance for restoration of Tigers populations in neighbouring countries and more secure funding for the ASEAN-Wildlife Enforcement Network.

Michael Baltzer, Leader of WWF’s Tiger Initiative, commented: “We are delighted to see a ray of hope for the Tiger as represented by the tiger range countries’ commitment to work together to double wild tiger numbers by 2022.”

Currently there are around 3,200 Tigers left in the wild. A Century ago the figure was 100,000.

Asian countries pledge to double tiger population
Yahoo News 29 Jan 10;

BANGKOK (AFP) – Representatives from 13 Asian countries on Friday pledged to double the number of wild tigers by the year 2022 and called for protection of habitats to save the animals from extinction.

The declaration, announced in a press statement by officials at the first Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation, in Thai coastal resort of Hua Hin, was hailed by conservation groups at the meeting.

"Let us join together boldly to save the wild tiger," Suwit Khunkitti, Thailand's minister of environment and natural resources, said in the statement.

The global wild tiger population is estimated to be at an all-time low of 3,200, down from an estimated 20,000 in the 1980s and 100,000 a century ago.

The declaration to preserve the animals will be considered for approval by heads of the 13 states when they meet in a Tiger Summit in September in Vladivostok, Russia, hosted by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

"We look forward to seeing their pledges turn into firm actions in Vladivostok," said Michael Baltzer, from the conservation agency WWF, adding he was "delighted to see a ray of hope for the tiger".

The 13 countries who attended the Hua Hin conference were Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.

The meeting, which began Wednesday, was organised by Thailand and the Global Tiger Initiative, a coalition formed in 2008 by the World Bank, US-based the Smithsonian Institute and dozens of conservation groups.

A recent WWF report blamed infrastructure developments, such as forests being cut up by roads and converted into commercial crop plantations, for destroying tigers' habitats.

The report also cited growing demand for tiger body parts used in traditional Chinese medicine as a major factor endangering wild tiger populations.

13 countries agree plan to save wild tigers
Michael Casey, Associated Press Yahoo News 29 Jan 10;

HUA HIN, Thailand – A dozen Asian nations and Russia vowed Friday to double the number of wild tigers by 2022, crack down on poaching that has devastated the big cats and prohibit the building of roads and bridges that could harm their habitats.

However, the historic declaration adopted by the 13 countries that have wild tigers includes no new money to finance the conservation efforts. The agreement only includes plans to approach international institutions like the World Bank for money and to develop schemes to tap money from ecotourism, carbon financing and infrastructure projects to pay for tiger programs.

"This is a historic meeting. Before this, not many people paid attention to tigers," Thailand's Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Suwit Khunkitti said after the three-day meeting in Hua Hin. "Stopping the depletion of tigers is a very important issue for all of us."

The declaration will now be considered for approval by heads of state of the 13 countries in September at a meeting in Vladivostok, Russia.

Tiger numbers in recent decades have plummeted because of human encroachment — with the loss of more than nine-tenths of their habitat — and poaching to supply a vibrant trade in tiger parts. From an estimated 100,000 at the beginning of the 20th century, the number of tigers today is less than 3,500.

Along with a target for doubling tiger populations, countries agreed to protect core tiger habitats as well as buffer zones and corridors that connect key sanctuaries and national parks. Governments also committed to reduce poaching through beefed-up law enforcement and to minimize human-tiger conflicts through job creation programs and other efforts.

The only setback, delegates said, was a successful effort by China to take out language in the draft declaration that called for maintaining a permanent ban on the tiger trade. China's concern is the impact the language would have on its domestic tiger trade, which has been banned since 1993 but which they have lobbied to reopen at some point.

Conservationists said the declaration included all the components for ensuring the tigers' steady recovery, though they warned much work had to be done to ensure all the promises were implemented.

"This is excellent news for tiger conservation," said Michael Baltzer, who heads the WWF Tiger Initiative and attended the meeting.

"Simply, there never has been a high-level government commitment to take forward tiger conservation," Baltzer said. "The fact the governments committed to doubling the numbers of tigers shows they have high ambition. They are setting the bar at a high level."

The World Bank's Keshav Varma, program director for the Global Tiger Initiative, said the declaration represents a new way of thinking among governments and donors.

"There is a new trend in society to save biodiversity, to be more conscious of climate change, to look at sustainability, to look at green development," Varma said. "It is a huge change and this is a manifestation of this change."

Varma and Baltzer downplayed the absence of financial commitments in the document, saying they expected pledges to be forthcoming in Russia as donors get a clearer idea of conservation plans that come out of this declaration and the cost of implementing them.

"Now that we have commitment from governments, the next step is bringing donor partners on board," Baltzer said. "Even here the donors came together and started talking about how they could be partners in this whole process."

The meeting was organized by Thailand and the Global Tiger Initiative, a coalition formed in 2008 by the World Bank, the Smithsonian Institute and nearly 40 conservation groups.

The 13 countries attending the meeting were Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.