Azoulay presented the initiative regarding the Our Ocean Conference hosted by Palau amid the multilateral organization’s warning of the risk that these underwater structures will no longer exist by the end of the century.
In this spirit, he accompanied the launch with a call for international mobilization to prevent the extinction of the coral reefs, declared a World Heritage Site, which cover a global area of more than 500,000 square kilometers and represent an exceptional biodiversity.
According to the director-general, the plan, which aims to strengthen the resilience of fragile ecosystems, will primarily benefit developing countries with initial funding of $10 million.
We are working with the Global Coral Reef Fund to fund this engagement, Azoulay said of the actions, which will focus on reducing local drivers of degradation, strengthening the sustainable management of protected areas in marine areas and supporting local communities .
The partnership will explore joint opportunities to prioritize support for 19 of the 29 World Heritage-listed reefs in Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Philippines, Indonesia, Solomon Islands, South, Kiribati, Mexico, Panama, South Africa, Sudan, Vietnam and Yemen.
The warming of the oceans due to global carbon emissions poses the greatest threat to the beautiful underwater structures that play a crucial role in absorbing carbon emissions and protecting coastlines from storms and erosion.
According to UNESCO, scientific data shows an alarming scenario as coral reefs are bleaching “much faster than science suggests”.
When this happens, they become very vulnerable to starvation and disease, and have an ever-increasing mortality rate, he said.
jf / wmr