Environment – Page 16 – Minivan News

President Waheed’s hand “almost impossible to play”: Mike Mason

Former Energy Advisor to President Nasheed Mike Mason has published an open reply to President Mohamed Waheed, following a letter Waheed sent to key international supporters of Nasheed seeking to justify his decisions and establish the legitimacy of his leadership. Mason, a former mining engineer and expert on renewable energy, carbon finance and offsetting, was the architect of a US$3 billion renewable energy investment scheme cut short by the events of February 7. Mason subsequently resigned. This letter first appeared on his blog.

Dear President Waheed,

Thank you for your letter setting out the position as you see it. Let me in turn set out my stall, before replying to the substance of what you say.

As you know, you and I have always had a cordial, even friendly relationship. I have always thought you a reputable and straightforward person and continue to believe in your personal integrity.

It is also the case that I am not Nasheed’s man. I have tremendous respect for him as a democrat, and a man of high principle and great vision, but I have disagreed with him very strongly on issues in the past, and believe he made many mistakes in his Presidency. That said, I suspect my assessment is fairly unreliable as I am sure he had pressures on him, as I am sure you have on you, which were invisible to the outside world.

I hope therefore what I say can be taken as offering you a helpful perspective from an outsider who came to like the Maldives and its people very much, and who made many friends there in the short time I was involved. The information I have about events in the Maldives, therefore, comes not only from the ‘Nasheed camp’ but from a range of sources with quite different perspectives.

Now to the substance of this response.

I have no reason to question that part of your letter which sets out the extent to which you personally were, and continue, to be committed to the Maldives, and democracy – or to the extent to which you put yourself and family at risk to support Nasheed. However I fear that your personal views and beliefs are not the driving issues here. It is the perception, not the reality, which matters more.

The key issues, I believe, are:

The Commission of National Inquiry (CoNI) was set up in the hope of setting the record surrounding your accession to power straight, and dismissing the smell of coup and corruption. Unfortunately it failed to do this.Two reasons come to mind: firstly the choice of Judge Selvam does not seem to have been designed to allay concerns about bias. The Burma/Singapore/Maldives/Oil/Heroin rumours and the Judge’s close connections to the ruling elite in Singapore make anything he does look suspect – especially when the former chairman of the STO is quoted in ‘The Week’ as allegedly saying he has friends in Singapore who would have told him if the police were investigating. Whatever the truth, and I cannot judge that, choosing Judge Selvam was guaranteed to create more dissent than agreement. Secondly, the rumours I have heard about the pressures that led to Saeed resigning from the CoNI will not make it easy to see the report as unbiased and complete – even if the substance of the content is correct and the rumours are false.
The second issue is the perception that the courts and judiciary in the Maldives are corrupt and incompetent, and politically tied to their old masters. Judge Abdullah is, I fear, widely seen as a travesty of a chief justice, and if he represents the rest it is not surprising many have lost faith in the system.

Thus the circumstances of the transfer of power as seen on numerous videos, coupled with the handling of the CoNI and the actions of the judiciary, means that I fear there is no way you will ever remove the taint of corruption and coup from this government – however clean, honest and transparent you personally may be. Unfortunately that’s life – perception counts more than reality – whatever the reality is. There is, I believe, almost nothing that you can do as President to heal the country’s ills however hard you try, or however good you are.

Note though that I said “Almost Nothing”. There is, in my humble opinion, one way out of this which would set you up as a President to be remembered – whether or not you win the next election, and it is this.

It is quite clear that, in any future election, the MDP have to be free to campaign as they wish. It is also clear that Nasheed MUST be free to campaign also. Only if he loses a genuine, free and fair, election in which he was openly given every facility to campaign, will the world (and I dare say many Maldivians) put the doubts about the 7th Feb behind them. Indicting him in a court whose authority is being challenged will simply make things worse.

It is also clear that a real leader must recognise publicly the issues surrounding the judiciary, and I suspect some fundamental issues of a faulty constitution and legal system.

A secondary, related issue, is the wide perception that drugs and gross corruption are in some way related to politics in dark corners. Is it coincidence that Burma is a major heroin producer? It will take a brave man to sweep out the taint of past corruption which runs a real risk of becoming a current problem, and even fatally tainting the next election.

Now to something I do really know about – money, oil and energy. The Maldives runs the risk of becoming bankrupted by its oil use – at the very least its economic development will be curtailed and people will eventually become poorer. The solutions are there and both affordable and financeable – or rather they were. You will never attract the level of finance needed to wean your society off expensive oil unless you have an environment where contract law is sacrosanct, the threat of nationalisation is removed, and you have transparent and predictable government and structures. Even the talk of nationalising the airport will set the country’s investment plans back decades.

In summary – I think you have an almost impossible hand to play. There are some cards you can play – but I fear that your advisors and political colleagues may hold you back from the rather brave decisions needed to play them. Play them, though, and the world will sit up and notice.

I wish you all the best,

Your friend,

Mike Mason

All comment pieces are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write an opinion piece, please send proposals to [email protected]

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Hoarafushi has “returned to normal” after last month’s flooding

Families displaced by last month’s flooding of Hoarafushi have been able to return home following a relief effort by the National Disaster Management Centre (NDMC).

Twenty-four inhabited islands were reported to have been affected by the heavy rain, with Hoarafushi in Haa Alif Atoll deemed by the NDMC as the most severely affected.

According to Hoarafushi Island Council Chair Ahmed Mauroof, up to 95 houses were flooded in the area, affecting an “estimated 600 people.”

The NDMC has been working to restore normality on the islands since the flooding. Disaster Management Centre Project Officer, Hisan Hassan, said: “Everyone has been returned to their homes, and I have heard from a councillor on the island that it has returned to normal now.

“Some families are still expecting some aid relief, as many foods, electrical and personal items were destroyed in the floods.”

An initial figure of MVR 10 million (US$648,000) had been made available from a contingency component in the national budget to provide relief to the damaged islands.

A government spokesperson confirmed that a report on the damage has been published.

Joint efforts from the island council, the island’s youth, police, the MNDF, officials of the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) and staff from the nearby Manafaru resort helped to put up sandbags, move furniture and to pump water from clogged up roads.

The floods started with heavy rain in the late afternoon on Monday October 29, causing flooding of up to five feet, according to police. The rains lasted non-stop until dawn on Tuesday.

Other islands affected by the rising waters, including Haa Alif Baarah and Haa Dhall Hanimadhoo were also assisted by the MNDF Northern Area Command.

Speaking to Minivan News last month, Mauroof said: “The cost of damage caused by flooding is expected to rise to millions.

“We formed the task force because our aim is to recover from this as quickly as possible.”

The severe weather had been linked to low pressure from cyclone Nilam, over the Bay of Bengal.

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Coral reefs begin to recover in the Maldives

Scientists have witnessed a “promising” recovery in the coral reefs around the Maldives, a recent survey has revealed.

The results show that some reefs now have more live coral cover than before the catastrophic El Niño bleaching event in 1998, which killed 95 percent of the country’s reefs – a key attraction for foreign tourists.

The project was set up by international conservation non-profit organisation Biosphere Expeditions. Scientists from the UK-based Marine Conservation Society (MCS) and the Maldives Marine Research Centre (MRC) surveyed areas known to have suffered from heavy bleaching.

The reef check conducted in September showed that many badly damaged reefs have recovered to populations in excess of 60 percent live coral. On one site, the survey team found there was more coral cover now than there was in 1997.

The latest findings follow a severe case of coral bleaching in 2010, when the MRC reported a resurgence of coral bleaching following a prolonged sea temperature rise.

The project found that the isolated, offshore and cleaner waters of the Maldives appeared to offer better conditions for coral recovery – contrasting findings published from the Great Barrier Reef, which noted that coral cover had reduced by more than 50 percent in the last 27 years.

Lead scientist for the project, MCS Biodiversity Officer Dr Jean-Luc Solandt, said: “Although our surveys aren’t as comprehensive in scale and number as those from the Great Barrier Reef, we have witnessed a promising recovery in the reefs we’ve visited.

“The number of chronic impacts to the reefs of the Maldives are fewer than those to the Great Barrier Reef, and that has probably resulted in this more positive response to the initial bleaching event die-off in the sites we visited in Ari Atoll.”

The focus of this year’s project was to undertake reef check surveys in areas first surveyed before and during the El Niño bleaching in 1998.

Meaning ‘little boy’ in Spanish, El Niño is a phenomenon which damaged more than 95 per cent of the Maldives’ reefs following three months of unusually high seawater temperatures that year.

Even the slightest rise in water temperature can put stress on the coral, causing it to lose its colour and turn white, before eventually dying.

Coral bleaching was named as one of the three main causes of coral death, along with outbreaks of coral-eating starfish and damage from major storms.

Despite the findings, Dr Solandt warned conservationists and stakeholders in the Maldives that they cannot afford to be complacent.

“There is over-fishing of large predatory fish and further ocean warming events on the horizon, and some of the reefs nearer to Male’ appear not to have recovered as extensively as those further afield,” he added.

Founder and Executive Director of Biosphere Expeditions Dr Matthias Hammer said that whatever the current state of the Maldive’s reefs, the future outlook was important.

“Even though the Maldive’s reefs are generally in waters of excellent purity from man-made pollutants and are seldom hit by coral-damaging storms or attacks by coral eating starfish, the consistently high sea temperatures, averaging 29 degrees Celsius, around the Maldives could lead to bleaching once again if temperatures reach over 30 degrees for any length of time,” he noted.

Environment Minister Dr Mariyam Shakeela was not responding at time of press.

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Severe flooding in Hoarafushi damages 95 households

Severe flooding caused by heavy rainfall on Monday has forced several residents of Hoarafushi in Haa Alif atoll to evacuate their homes after flood waters damaged furniture and electrical wiring in 95 households.

Speaking to Minivan News today, Hoarafushi Island Council Chair Ahmed Mauroof said 95 households were flooded, affecting an “estimated 600 people.”

“The cost of the damage caused by flooding is expected to rise to millions,” Mauroof said, explaining that furniture and electronic equipment were damaged in the affected households.

While some families have since returned to their homes, Mauroof said the island council has provided housing and food for a number of islanders at a public building while others have found shelter with relatives.

The flood waters have now receded or been pumped out by the joint efforts of the island council, the island’s youth, police, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF), officials of the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) and staff from the nearby Manafaru resort, Mauroof said.

The joint efforts included putting up sandbags, moving furniture and other items to safe locations and pumping water from clogged roads, police said in a press release yesterday.

Heavy rains that started in the late afternoon on Monday caused flooding of up to five feet, according to police. Thick torrential rains that started around 4:30pm on Monday reportedly lasted non-stop until dawn on Tuesday.

The MNDF Northern Area Command meanwhile launched efforts in collaboration with island councils on Monday to pump water from the affected northern islands, including Haa Alif Baarah and Haa Dhaal Hanimadhoo in addition to Hoarafushi.

Hoarafushi, one the of the northernmost islands in the Maldives, has a population of over 2,000 people.

Task force

In addition to households, Mauroof said flooding also caused damage to the island’s health centre.

“The flood water damaged the computer system and some documents there as well as medical equipment,” the councillor said, adding that electric wiring in “the very old building” was also damaged.

Moreover, as there was no sewerage system in the island, “the septic tanks, owned by the people of the island, burst, overflowed and spread waste into the island.”

Mauroof said he received information today that children and adults were being treated at the health centre for diarrhoea.

The island’s youth together with the island council have formed a task force to coordinate relief efforts and seek assistance, Mauroof said, adding that he was currently in Male’ with a number of youth from the island to seek donations.

The deputy chair of the island council was coordinating efforts back at Hoarafushi, he explained.

“We formed the task force because our aim is to recover from this as quickly as possible,” the council chair said.

As the only usable water in the island at the moment was rainwater stored in tanks – privately owned wells were also contaminated – Mauroof said the task force in Male’ was working with the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) to send water supplies to Hoarafushi.

Hoarafushi residents appeal for help on social media

On the efforts to seek financial assistance, Mauroof said business magnate and Jumhooree Party (JP) MP Gasim Ibrahim has donated MVR 250,000 while ‘Champa’ Mohamed Moosa has pledged the same amount on behalf of private broadcaster DhiTV and its sister network DhiFM.

Other wealthy individuals in Male’ have pledged financial assistance, he added.

Mauroof said he believed that assistance from “affluent persons” was necessary as it was “unlikely” that the island could recover from the flooding solely through the efforts of the council and central government in Male’.

Hoarafushi youth have meanwhile made appeals on social media for assistance. Mauroof said the task force planned to launch a hotline and a relief fund later today.

President Waheed visits Hoarafushi

President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik meanwhile arrived in Hoarafushi this morning and pledged government assistance to the families affected by flooding.

State broadcaster Television Maldives (TVM) reported that two people were being treated at the health centre for diarrhoea.

A TVM reporter at Hoarafushi explained that canals have been dug out on two locations of the island to draw flood waters out to the sea.

According to TVM, the DMC has set up an ’emergency working group’ with the MNDF, Maldivian Red Crescent and the Local Government Authority to assess damage caused by flooding and coordinate relief efforts.

Emergency Response Officer Mohamed Didi said that arrangements have been made with the State Trading Organisation (STO) to provide foodstuff to the affected islands, which also included two islands in Haa Dhaal Atoll.

“At 3:00pm today, an STO boat will leave Haa Dhaal Kulhudhufushi for Haa Alif Hoarafushi with 90 bags of rice, flour and sugar,” Didi told the state broadcaster.

Moreover, a second STO boat would leave from Male’ at 6:00pm with medicine, water supplies, pillows and mattresses, the DMC official said.

Meanwhile, in a statement today, former President Mohamed Nasheed noted “with happiness, the good example and Islamic principle showed by citizens to provide assistance to those in need at this time.”

In addition to the northernmost islands, the former president’s statement noted that severe weather has caused damage in the Hulhudhoo and Feydhoo wards of Addu City as well as Fuvahmulah in the south.

The Department of Meteorology yesterday warned of “rough seas, heavy rain and strong winds for the next two days.” The current weather conditions were believed to be linked to low pressure left by a cyclone currently active in the Bay of Bengal.

The BCC reported today that cyclone Nilam was expected to make landfall on the Tamil Nadu state of India.

Meanwhile, in an announcement yesterday, the MNDF coastguard urged travellers to take extra precautionary measures and stay updated on weather conditions.

The coastguard also advised against non-essential travel as heavy rains and rough seas were forecast for the next 24 hours.

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Rainbow Warrior visiting Maldives as part of two month Indian Ocean tour

The Rainbow Warrior – flagship of environmental NGO Greenpeace – is visiting the Maldives as part of a two-month tour of the Indian Ocean.

“Greenpeace has come to the Indian Ocean in order to learn about fishing activities in the region, and to talk to communities, governments, officials and the tuna fishing industry, with the intention of working together to combat overfishing and to stop destructive and illegal fishing,” the international organisation stated.

During the vessel’s visit to the Maldives, the crew will document the pole and line fishery in the southern atoll, hold a one-day conference on sustainable tuna, involving political, fishing and commercial sectors joint monitoring and surveillance with the Maldivian coast guard in Maldivian waters. The vessel will be opened to school children in Laamu Gan.

Executive Secretary of the International Pole and Line Foundation (IPNLF), Athif Shakoor, who is coordinating the Greenpeace visit, told Minivan News that the Rainbow Warrior’s visit was significant for the Maldives, as was the organisation’s endorsement of pole and line fishing methods.

“Pole and line fishing is more sustainable and central to employment in many communities,” he explained.

As a sustainable fishing method, pole and line fishing could be marketed as a premium brand and the higher prices passed to the fishermen, Shakoor said.

Minivan News has previously reported that retail premiums for pole and line-caught fish were being largely absorbed by the supermarket chains that sold them, leaving Maldivian fishermen to compete with the technologically-advanced and substantially less sustainable fishing vessels of other nations.

In October 2011, Minivan News reported concerns from fisheries authorities and industry that the country was effectively “under siege” by the vessels of other nations – particularly the French and Spanish – which had ringed the Maldives’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) with ‘Fish Aggregation Devices’ (FADS).

Fish such as tuna are naturally attracted to the floating object, such as a buoy, typically fitted with a sonar device capable of determining the quantity of fish below, and a satellite uplink that communicates this to the nearby fishing vessel. The vessel’s net does not discriminate between the predators and scavengers attracted by the target fish population around the FAD.

The local canning industry has also expressed concern about being unable to buy fish at a competitive price from local fishermen, who were instead selling their catch to canning conglomerates in Thailand, which were then labelling and exporting the product as a ‘Maldivian’ pole and line product with little oversight of the supply chain.

The Rainbow Warrior

The first Rainbow Warrior was bombed by French agents in 1987 while it was in New Zealand preparing to lead a flotilla of ships in protest against French nuclear testing. The explosion killed a Greenpeace photographer.

After two years of international arbitration the French government was ordered to pay Greenpeace US$8.159 million.

The second Rainbow Warrior vessel was commissioned in 1989. In 2005 the vessel ran aground on a coral reef in the Philippines while inspecting it for coral bleaching, and was ordered to pay US$7000 for the damage caused. Greenpeace paid the fine but claimed the Philippines government had given it outdated navigational charts.

The third – and current – Rainbow Warrior is 57. 92 metres in length, can accomodate 30 people, has a large conference room and helipad, and is powered by five sails with a backup diesel electric engine.

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Cyclone in Bay of Bengal causing adverse conditions in the Maldives

Heavy rains and strong winds experienced in the Maldives over the past few days have been linked to low pressure left by the cyclone currently active in the Bay of Bengal.

“Bad weather will be experienced from Huvadhu Atoll to Raa Atoll today. We have received information that Laamu Atoll has faced damage due to heavy rain. We also expect rough seas, heavy rain and strong winds for the next two days,” said Deputy Director General of Department of Meteorology Ali Shareef.

After heavy rains over the Eid holiday, weather conditions have deteriorated further in recent days reportedly causing damage to some property in the country’s southern atolls as well as flooding in Male’ in recent days.

The Meteorology Department has forecast heavy rains for at least another 24 hours with winds of between 25-35 miles per hour predicted as well as gusts between 50 and 60 miles per hour.

The department has advised against any maritime activities owing to the harsh conditions – which are said to include waves of between 4 and 6 feet on the open sea.

Sun Online has today reported the roofs of three houses were blown off by strong winds in Addu atoll. The MNDF are said to be lending assistance and no injuries have been reported.

The National Disaster Management Centre (NDMC) has requested atoll and island councils to inform it of any damage caused by the weather as well urging people to take precautions against the strong winds and anticipated floods, reported Haveeru.

“We advise you to maintain cleanliness at waste areas to avoid diseases that can arise from flooding, and also to remove overhanging branches,” said the statement.

The Sri Lankan meteorological department today called off an evacuation order along its periphery as the cyclone, situated in the south-east of the Bay of Bengal, changed course 100km from the coast and headed towards India.

India’s meteorology department is predicting winds of up to 90 miles per hour to hit the country’s south east, with local authorities in Tamil Nadu urging fisherman to stay on land and shutting down hundreds of schools.

“We have declared a holiday in all the schools, colleges, government offices in five districts of Tamil Nadu. Fishermen have been warned not to go out into the sea,” a government administrator told AFP.

Poor weather conditions in the Maldives last month resulted in over a dozen incidents of people stranded or capsized in the ocean, reported the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF).

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Maldives committed to carbon neutral aims despite political uncertainty

The government says it remains committed to pursuing the previous administration’s carbon neutral ambitions despite recent political tensions reportedly affecting investment potential for such schemes.

Environment Minister Dr Mariyam Shakeela contended that some of the programs presently being undertaken by her ministry had started seven years previously – before Former President Mohamed Nasheed came to power – and were being adhered to on the grounds they would benefit the nation.

“We are continuing with the carbon neutrality program,” she said. “ We are giving it our best shot.”

Nasheed, who alleges he was forced to resign under duress back in February of this year, claimed that resulting political tensions from his ouster had all but ended hopes of achieving these aims. The former president aimed to position himself globally as a high profile advocate for pursuing carbon neutral developments.

However, as the Maldives commits itself to a new US$138 million project that it has claimed within five years will generate 16 megawatts of renewable energy, one regional environmental organisation has called for greater collaboration between Indian Ocean nations to drive sustainability.

Mumbai-based NGO, the Centre for Environmental Research and Education (CERE) has told Minivan News that despite being a small island state, the Maldives stood as a good indicator of how other larger nations could scale up its programs to successfully undertake green initiatives.

“Maldives needs to assume a bigger role in the sustainability dialogue with India and a clear road map on how this will be achieved has to be stipulated,” CERE stated, pointing to the key commitments it hoped to see from the present government.

The comments were made as the Maldives Energy Authority yesterday told local media that once the US$138 million project became operational, ten islands within the country would be entirely powered with renewable energy. The ministry contended that a further 30 percent of the total energy demands of 30 islands would be “converted” to renewable energy.

Minister of State for Environment and Energy, Abdul Matheen Mohamed, said that a so-called Sustainable Renewable Energy Project (SREP) was also set to be conducted on 50 islands with assistance from organisations like the Climate Investment Fund as part of wider national sustainability commitments, according to Haveeru.

Environment Minister Dr Shakeela confirmed to Minivan News today that the SREP scheme was directly related to the the Scaling-Up Renewable Energy Program in Low Income Countries devised under the previous government of former President Nasheed.

Some of the key minds who helped devise the Scaling-Up Renewable Energy Program (SREP) for the former government said earlier this year that the project had fallen through after political instability following February’s controversial transfer of power had deterred potential investors in the scheme.

Dr Shakeela, who was in Hyderabad, India, for the 11th Convention on Biological Diversity confirmed that the project had been within the Economic Ministry before she retrieved and reviewed the plans.

“I worked on it with the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the IFC and it has now been finished,” she said.

“I think it is important [to understand] that our ministry does not categorise projects according to who has [initiated them]. Our plan is to continue them with all the policies and programs as long as they are not detrimental to the economy.”

The government of President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan has previously stressed that it was committed to “not completely” reversing the Nasheed administration’s zero carbon strategy: “What we are aiming to do is to elaborate more on individual sustainable issues and subject them to national debate.”

As well as committing to trying meet the carbon neutral goals of his predecessor, President Waheed has also announced plans to make the Maldives the world’s largest marine reserve within the next five years five.

Eco-challenges

Addressing the Maldives’ ongoing eco-commitments, CERE claimed that the main challenge for carbon reduction developments both in the country and around the world was to show sustainability projects could actually be synonymous with economic benefit.

CERE Co-Founder Kitayun (Katy) Rustom claimed that the organisation continued to try and advocate green strategies that defied traditional perceptions of sustainability being seen as ‘anti-development’ or ‘anti-growth’.

“It is necessary for all of countries to realise that our window of opportunity for carbon reduction is only till 2020 – after this it will be next to impossible to mitigate the disastrous and irreversible impacts of climate change,” she claimed.

“The key challenge is to see carbon reduction as a positive economic initiative.”

Rustom said that the Maldives’ ongoing attempts to become a carbon neutral economy were well publicised in India and reflected a “commonality of purpose” between the two nations.

“India is one of the most vulnerable to climate change especially with respect to sea level rise – just like the Maldives – since it has a 7,500 km long coastline and even a one metre rise in sea levels will submerge an estimated 5,700 square kilometres displacing millions of people,” she added.

“Of course, there are a host of other catastrophic impacts that climate change will have on our country. India does not see itself as any different from the island states in the Indian Ocean and it understands the need of working on a united platform.”

Rustom added that she ultimately hoped for much more defined collaborations between the authorities of Indian Ocean nations in future.

“A cross-sharing of carbon reduction strategies need to be encouraged and formalised in which quantitative targets need to be spelt out. The Maldives needs to assume a bigger role in the sustainability dialogue with India and a clear road map on how this will be achieved has to be stipulated,” she said.

“Perhaps the Ministry of Environments of both countries can set up a Indian-Maldivian Committee to work on this mission and lay down specific goals.”

Earlier this year, former President Nasheed’s Climate Change Advisor – UK-based author, journalist and environmental activist Mark Lynas – said that after the controversial nature of the transfer that bought the present government to power, he was sceptical of its ability to take stands on sustainable development.

Lynas claimed that the loss of “democratic legitimacy” in the Maldives had destroyed its ability to make a moral stand on climate change-related issues, and be taken seriously.

“I think that the Maldives is basically a has-been in international climate circles now,” said Lynas, who drew a monthly stipend of Rf10,000 (US$648) for expenses whilst serving in his position.

“The country is no longer a key player, and is no longer on the invite list to the meetings that matter. Partly this is a reflection of the political instability – other countries no longer have a negotiating partner that they know and understand,” he said.

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Maldives world’s most vulnerable country to climate-change related impacts on food security

The Maldives is the world’s most vulnerable country to the food-security related impacts of climate change, a new report has found.

According to ‘Ocean-Based Food Security Threatened in a High CO2 World’, produced by global ocean protection NGO Oceana, the Maldives ranks alongside Togo and Comoros as the most vulnerable to climate-change related food security threats, due to its near total reliance on fish for protein.

The rankings were calculated by combining each nation’s exposure to climate change and ocean acidification, dependence on and consumption of fish and seafood, and level of adaptive capacity based on socioeconomic factors.

“Many of the high-ranking nations based on climate change indicators are located in the tropics and low latitudes,” the report notes.

“This reflects the general trend that fish species are predicted to be migrating toward the poles as water temperatures continue to rise. Tropical countries are the most dependent on coral reef fisheries which are severely threatened.

“Island and coastal nations depend more heavily on fish for protein, especially the poorest nations, increasing their vulnerability. Many of the poorest places are already struggling with hunger issues which will be made worse with high population growth rates and limited additional options for food.”

Half the protein consumed in the Maldives is derived from fish, the report observed, and besides providing direct food protein, countries such as the Maldives also benefited from marine tourism jobs associated with coral reefs and marine life.

“This multi-billion dollar industry could also be threatened by climate change. Therefore, further assessments should incorporate the risks to food security that come from losses in income due to the disappearance of fisheries and tourism related jobs. Local changes to marine resources from ocean acidification and climate change could ripple up through the global economy,” the report found.

‘So long and thanks for all the fish’

Minivan News has earlier reported on the decline of the fishing industry in the Maldives due to an array of factors, notably high-tech and efficient purse seiner vessels from other nations ringing the country’s exclusive economic zone. The traditional – and sustainable – pole and line method used by Maldivian fishermen has left them unable to compete with GPS enabled, sonar-equipped fish aggregation devices of these vessels.

Local fisheries have also been affected by market impacts, particularly the move by major fisheries companies in the Maldives to ship tuna to Thailand for canning and processing despite the presence of local factories – many tins sold locally in shops now have ‘packed in Thailand’ on the label.

Former head of the Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company (MIFCO), Adhil Saleem, previously informed Minivan News that changing sea surface temperatures due to climate change were also driving fish deeper, reducing the stocks within reach of the traditional pole and line method.

“Our [pole and line] method only works near the surface,” he said. “But with changes in weather and sea temperature, fish will not surface.”

According to figures from the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA), tuna fishing is the second largest export earner at US$52 million and the country’s largest employer at 40 percent, but in the last three years contributed only 2 percent of the country’s GDP, dwarfed by the tourism industry. Catches meanwhile declined eight percent in 2011.

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Climate Change Trust Fund receives money for new projects

The Maldives government and its international partners today announced the launch of three projects under the World Bank administered Maldives Climate Change Trust Fund (CCTF).

A total of US$8.5million has been contributed by Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and the European Union (EU) to the CCTF to assist with these projects.

The CCTF was established in 2010 after the signing of an MOU between the Maldives government, the World Bank Group and the EU with the aim of targeting solid waste management, capacity building for environmental management, and technical assistance for monitoring and managing key natural assets.

The projects announced today included the Ari Atoll Solid Waste Management Pilot (AASWM) and a project called Wetlands Conservation and Coral Reef Monitoring for Adaptation to Climate Change (WCCM).

AASWM will assist in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and damage done to the local marine environment in the western atoll.

“The success of the pilot project is expected to bring about the participation of the remaining inhabited islands of Ari Atoll, particularly those where IWMCs were built with prior funding from EU”, said Bernard Savage, EU’s Ambassador to the Maldives.

Australia’s new High Commissioner to the Maldives, Robyn Mudie described the benefits of the WCCM scheme.

“Sustaining wetlands and coral reefs is a cost-effective strategy for climate change adaptation with strong benefits for disaster mitigation, ecosystem conservation and economic growth”, she said.

The WCCM will work with resorts in North and South Male’ atolls to demonstrate the way in which monitoring techniques can help in targeting conservation efforts.

“The WCCM being implemented in Fuvahmulah of Gnaviyani Atoll, Hithadhoo of Addu Atoll and Alif Alif Ukulhas Island in North Ari Atoll will benefit its 22,000 inhabitants enabling the local governments to implement a clear strategy for wetland management, drainage management, ecotourism and community rainwater harvesting,” read today’s joint press release.

“These three projects will be particularly useful in the context of the decentralized governance framework and public private partnerships. Once piloted and proven successful, the models could be scaled-up and replicated across the country,” it added.

The final project announced today will attempt to provide an annual 300MWh of renewable energy via solar voltaic systems and energy efficiency measures for the people of Thinadhoo Island in the Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll.

“Independence from carbon-based fuels, if achieved through energy efficiency improvements and use of indigenous renewable energy resources has important energy security co-benefits as it will avoid fossil fuel imports that cost Maldives 20 percent of its GDP, annually”, said Dr. Mariyam Shakeela, Minister of Environment and Energy.

The Maldives’ most ambitious renewable energy project, the Scaling-Up Renewable Energy Program (SREP), fell through after political instability in the country deterred potential investors.

Climate change governance

The World Bank’s original objectives for the trust fund’s programme included strengthening government leadership and increasing the country’s institutional capacity to deal with climate change issues.

Following the announcement of these projects, local civil society group Transparency Maldives (TM) told Minivan News of its concerns regarding the CCTF financing agreement.

“We welcome the utilisation of the funds from the CCTF for the benefit of the people, but we note that the Financing Agreement of CCTF was signed in January 2011 and, as the Auditor General’s report for 2011 has identified, there are considerable delays as well as waste involved in CCTF,” a spokesperson said.

“This points to weaknesses in climate governance in the Maldives,” they added. “At the same time, we are deeply concerned by the constant change of institutions or creation of new institutions or inaction of existing ones. This increases risks of corruption.”

The spokesperson expressed their concerns that the civil society and the public were not more involved in the conception and planning of climate change projects.

TM established the Climate Change Integrity Project (CGIP) last year in order to help ensure that financing for climate change projects is transparent, equitable, and free from corruption.

The current government has been criticised by members of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) for what it views as attempts to undo the decentralisation measures taken during its time in office

Following the decision last April to re-centralise health and utility service, party member Aminath Shauna said that it was impossible to effectively implement country-wide services from the capital.

“They want to re-establish a relationship of dependency between the islands and Malé. Their intent in this is to consolidate power,” said Shauna.

Similarly, party’s spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor last month stated his belief that public-private partnerships (PPP) initiated under the MDP government have been suspended “in the interest of preserving the status and wealth of few local wealthy businessmen.”

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