Climate variability and increased in human and animal population in the Ecowas region, are changing the ecological balance, thus leading  to environmental degradation of the region.

This will be exacerbated by climate change that’s beginning to be experienced in the region.

This statement was made by Momodou Kotu Cham, Secretary of State for Forestry and Environment, at a two-day validation workshop of the Ecowas and UMOA environment  policy, currently underway at Conrintia Atlantic Hotel, Banjul.

SoS Cham said the natural resources and environment of the region will be most affected, if not sustainably managed. He said the consequence will be continuous human suffering and impoverishment, due to over exploitation and depletion of the natural resources and degradation of the environment, adding that the goods and services derived from the enviroment will be lost if we allow it to degrade further through pollution and over exploitation.

 SoS Cham added that a good environment policy should be able to spell out the best and worst natural resources and environment practices of the past that have landed us into the current situation.

“It is also prudent to take into consideration that global and regional agreements on enviroment management are respected and taken into consideration in the policy. Respect for global and regional initiatives and agreements go a long way towards complementing efforts at the national level and in meeting national needs for enhanced natural resources and environment management.

 Significant capacity development  and progress in planning and management of national and regional policies can be achieved with effective international cooperation”, SoS Cham pointed out.

For his part, Issaka Hachimou, Ecowas representative said the United Nations Conference for the Environment and Development, has created a widespread awareness all over the world on the finite nature of our land natural resources and the urgent need to manage these resources and the whole environment in a sustainable manner.

“It is in this context that our sub-region through member countries of the commission and sub-regional multilateral organisations, such as UEMOA and CILSS have continued to develop environmental policy components, at country level and programmes for the sustainable management of natural resources at the level of  regional institutions,” he said.

In the same vein, he added, new opportunities have been offered to our sub- region, through the NEPAD environmental programme and the Ecowas  2007 - 2010 strategic plan, which lay emphasis on environmental protection and makes it a priority in accordance with the vision of our Heads of States.

Momodou Sarr, Executive Director of NEA, said today’s event is very unique in the sense that it is the very first tme that the Ecowas Commission, in partnership with the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAMU), is attempting to formulate a coordinated approach to sound environmental management for our entire sub-region.

He said “you will agree that this approach by the Ecowas Commission to harmonise and coordinate a common evironmental policy for the member states makes a great deal of sense”. 

Mr Sarr added that most of the major environmental problems being encountered in our sub-region are very similar in nature, noting that the harsh impacts of transboundary environmental problems, such as desertification, climate change and coastal erosion, to name just a few, cannot be solved effectively by individual states acting on their own. “Past experience has proven that the only viable option is a coordinated regional approach to address such transboundary problems”, he remarked.