Seychelles supports 3rd ‘Because the Ocean Declaration’ |03 November 2021
‘Because the Ocean’ is an initiative formed by a group of United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Parties at COP21 in 2015 and has since then spearheaded the link between the ocean and climate change to promote actions to give scientific weight to this indivisible interaction.
Seychelles is one of the 39 signatories to this initiative.
The Declaration is described as “a plurilateral initiative in support of a multilateral ocean outcome at COP26”- calls for the adoption of a COP26 decision encouraging all Parties to the UN Climate Convention, to integrate ocean-climate-biodiversity linkages in their plans to implement the Paris Agreement, and to recognise the need for more ambition on all sides to tackle climate change and protect the ocean.
To show its support Seychelles joined other countries’ delegates in the presence of the HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco to launch the 3rd ‘Because the Ocean’ Declaration, on October 31 at the high-level event on the first day of COP26 at the University of Edinburg.
Seychelles was represented by Elissa Lalande, senior policy analyst and negotiator for climate change.
The ocean is a great regulator of the climate and it absorbs around 23% of annual emissions into the atmosphere of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2).
Its ecosystems assist in addressing the climate impacts. Coral reefs for example are the most effective natural barrier in dissipating wave energy and this helps to reduce coastal erosion on the shore. Seychelles places great importance on the ocean’s role in climate change mitigation and adaptation.
The first declaration in 2015 invited the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to produce the special report on the ocean and cryosphere in a changing climate, to recognise the importance of the ocean for both mitigation and adaptation to climate change. The second declaration in 2016, sought the inclusion of the ocean in the second ambition cycle and the global stock take and encourage parties to submit climate strategies, including the nationally determined contributions (NDCs) where appropriate that promote ambitious climate action to minimise the effects of climate change on the ocean.
The dependence of Small Island Developing States (SIDS), like Seychelles, on the marine environment means the oceans have commanded centre stage in their whole development agenda and Seychelles will keep stressing the importance of the ocean in its international affairs especially in connection to climate change.
Press release from the Ministry of Agriculture, Climate Change and Environment
