Greece
Statement delivered by the Representative of
of Greece to the UN
Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals
Focus Areas 13 (Conservation and sustainable use of marine resources, oceans and seas) and 14 (Ecosystems and biodiversity)
8 May, 2014
Focus Area 13: Conservation and sustainable use of marine resources, oceans and seas
• Greece being a country surrounded by Sea, we strongly support the inclusion of a standalone goal for oceans and seas, as also mentioned by numerous delegations
• Moreover, we would like to stress the need for consistency of the targets of SDGs with existing international commitments.
• We welcome the inclusion of all targets proposed in that focus area.
Furthermore, we would like to propose the following amendments:
• In target d, at the end we propose the inclusion of the phrase “ in accordance with the United Nations Convention of the Law of the See”, since the latter provides the legal framework for the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans and their resources.
• In target c we propose the addition, at the end of the sentence, after “small-scale fisheries”, of the words “and aquaculture” , so that the last sentence will read “and support sustainable small-scale fisheries and aquaculture”.
• In target f, after Marine Protected Areas, we propose the addition of the words “including in areas beyond national jurisdiction”, so that the sentence will read “establish Marine Protected Areas, including in areas beyond national jurisdiction”.
Focus Area 14: Ecosystems and biodiversity
• Greece supports the inclusion of targets a. as regards to halting the loss of biodiversity, c. maintaining genetic diversity of both farmed species and their wild relatives, d. referring to sustainable management of all forests, including of mountain ecosystems, and g. regarding end poaching and trafficking of endangered species.
• We would like to propose an amendment in target e, by including references to the important issues of Desertification and Drought, as also mentioned by Troika USA, Canada, Israel and Saudi Arabia. According to our proposal target e should read: “ By 2030 address the challenges of Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought, by achieving a land degradation neutral world”.
of Greece to the UN
Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals
Focus Areas 13 (Conservation and sustainable use of marine resources, oceans and seas) and 14 (Ecosystems and biodiversity)
8 May, 2014
Focus Area 13: Conservation and sustainable use of marine resources, oceans and seas
• Greece being a country surrounded by Sea, we strongly support the inclusion of a standalone goal for oceans and seas, as also mentioned by numerous delegations
• Moreover, we would like to stress the need for consistency of the targets of SDGs with existing international commitments.
• We welcome the inclusion of all targets proposed in that focus area.
Furthermore, we would like to propose the following amendments:
• In target d, at the end we propose the inclusion of the phrase “ in accordance with the United Nations Convention of the Law of the See”, since the latter provides the legal framework for the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans and their resources.
• In target c we propose the addition, at the end of the sentence, after “small-scale fisheries”, of the words “and aquaculture” , so that the last sentence will read “and support sustainable small-scale fisheries and aquaculture”.
• In target f, after Marine Protected Areas, we propose the addition of the words “including in areas beyond national jurisdiction”, so that the sentence will read “establish Marine Protected Areas, including in areas beyond national jurisdiction”.
Focus Area 14: Ecosystems and biodiversity
• Greece supports the inclusion of targets a. as regards to halting the loss of biodiversity, c. maintaining genetic diversity of both farmed species and their wild relatives, d. referring to sustainable management of all forests, including of mountain ecosystems, and g. regarding end poaching and trafficking of endangered species.
• We would like to propose an amendment in target e, by including references to the important issues of Desertification and Drought, as also mentioned by Troika USA, Canada, Israel and Saudi Arabia. According to our proposal target e should read: “ By 2030 address the challenges of Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought, by achieving a land degradation neutral world”.
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