US pledges $40 Million to save Marine ecosystem of 6 Nations - 1

US Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenny announces yesterday during the second Coral Triangle Initiative (CTI) Senior Official’s Meeting in Manila that the US government pledged nearly $40 million is support of the international effort by six nations and their partners to save the Coral Triangle, the world’s greatest expanse of mangrove, coral reef and fish biodiversity. The Coral Triangle is under threat from pollution, unsustainable fishing practices, and climate change.

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Department of State will provide these new funds over five years to the CTI, a consortium formed to promote sustainable fisheries and coastal resource management programs in East Timor, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and the Solomon Islands. The governments of these countries have come together in a striking demonstration of political will and international cooperation .

The CTI seeks to protect six million square kilometers of ocean and coasts, an area that has been called the “Amazon of the Seas” for its biodiversity. The Coral Triangle, where the Indian and Pacific oceans meet, is home to 30% of the world’[s coral reefs and represents 75% of the known coral species.