At UN Oceans conference, Cameroon’s Agho Oliver commits to environmental protection
By Hans Ngala
One of Cameroon’s Members of Parliament (MP), the Hon. Agho Oliver, has returned from Nice, France, where he pledged parliamentarians’ commitment to “building momentum for the ratification of the High Seas Treaty”.
Honourable Agho was speaking on June 12 at the third UN Oceans Conference in the French city of Nice. He delivered his remarks on behalf of Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA), a New York-based, non-partisan NGO network of legislators from all over the world “acting in their capacity to advocate for human rights, democracy, the rule of law, gender equality and environmental protection,” he told CNA.
“Since the adoption of the High Seas Treaty (in 2023), we have sensitized our global membership and facilitated the exchange of information at the local and regional levels, addressing requests about the status of the treaty and building political support for ratification. Once the treaty is ratified, its successful implementation depends on parliamentarians to assure effective national legislation, international cooperation, and political will,” the MP for Bafut-Tubah Constituency in the North West, added.
“We also committed to supporting PGA-member parliamentarians on ratification and implementation of the treaty, encouraging civil society and local communities to protect the ocean and protecting 30 percent of our oceans by 2030 by implementing marine protected areas in the high seas,” the MP clarified.
The High Seas Treaty, also known as the agreement on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction provides for the common governance of about half of the Earth’s surface and 95% of the ocean’s volume – the largest habitat on our blue planet and its key provisions include promoting equity and fairness; tackling environmental degradation; fighting climate change, and preventing biodiversity loss in the high seas.
The conference in France comes at a time when US President Donald Trump has withdrawn from similar agreements aimed at protecting the environment, leaving the remaining countries to grapple with how to fund various environmental initiatives.
However, Reuters reported that “a group of development banks including the European Investment Bank and Asian Development Bank said they planned to invest 3 billion euros ($3.5 billion) by the end of the decade to help prevent plastic pollution reaching the sea” – which is still a far cry from the $175 billion which is needed for ocean protection according to experts.
