TropicalCoast 4th new indd

34

July 2008

The Government of the Republic of Indonesia, the 

Government of Malaysia, and the Government of the 

Republic of the Philippines, hereinafter referred to 

singularly as “the Party” and collectively as “the Parties”;

RECOGNISING that:

-  the states exercise sovereign rights over their natural 

resources and that co-operation is important in the 

conservation and sustainable development of these 

resources in respect of areas beyond national jurisdiction 

and of mutual interest, in line with the provisions of the 

Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) including the 

Jakarta Mandate of 1995;

-  the relevant provisions of the United Nations Convention 

on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) of 1982, particularly 

Part IX thereof relating to enclosed and semi-enclosed 

seas encourages co-operation among regional states, 

and other interested states in marine environment 

protection and marine scientifi c research;

-  the outcome of the World Summit on Sustainable 

Development (WSSD), in particular, the Johannesburg 

Declaration on Sustainable Development and Paragraph 

29 of the Plan of Implementation states that eff ective 

coordination and co-operation at global and regional 

levels, among others, are needed to ensure sustainable 

development of the oceans;

-   the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion (SSME) is signifi cant 

as a globally unique center of biodiversity with vibrant 

ecological integrity, including all species assemblages, 

Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of 

the Republic of Indonesia and 

the Government of Malaysia and 

the Government of the Republic of the Philippines 

on the Adoption of the Conservation Plan for the 

Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion

communities, habitats and ecological processes;

-  the SSME is a highly productive ecoregion that can 

sustainably and equitably provide for the socioeconomic 

and cultural needs of the human communities 

dependent on it; 

-  the shared resources of SSME is a common concern and 

the conservation of sustainable development of said 

resources and the benefi ts are mutually shared among 

the Parties; 

-  the ecoregion approach to conservation facilitates the 

realisation of the four fundamental goals of biodiversity 

conservation, which are representation, sustainability of 

ecological processes, viability of species, and resiliency.

ACKNOWLEDGING that: 

-  ecoregion approach off ers opportunities to achieve 

these goals mainly because of comprehensive joint 

management at the ecoregional levels and through 

complementary action at the national levels; more 

systematic and coherent actions responsive to the 

requirements of ecological rather than political 

boundaries; availability of resources for conservation 

from stakeholders at various levels; and, higher degree 

of effi

  ciency and eff ectiveness due to the matching of 

resources for conservation with the type and degree of 

needs;

-    the Conservation Plan for the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine 

Ecoregion, hereinafter referred to as the Ecoregion 

---

35

Tropical Coasts

Conservation Plan (ECP), addresses the ecological 

integrity and sustainability of resources;

-   the ECP was formulated by the respective stakeholders 

of the SSME from the three participating nations;

NOTING that the eff ective implementation of the ECP of 

the SSME, under the concept of large-scale conservation 

and sustainable development, can only be realised through 

collaborative management among concerned government 

agencies and other stakeholders in the bordering states;

AFFIRMING their intention to establish mutually benefi cial 

cooperation on the conservation and sustainable 

management of biodiversity in the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine 

Ecoregion, thereby enhancing friendly relations among the 

Parties;

HAVE AGREED as follows:

ARTICLE I

DEFINITION

For the purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding:

1.  “Ecoregion” means a relatively large unit of land or 

water that contains a distinct assemblage of natural 

communities sharing a large majority of species, 

dynamics, and environmental conditions, and 

consequently functions eff ectively as a conservation 

unit.

2.  “Ecoregion Conservation Plan (ECP)” means a plan 

of action that spells out the short-term (10-15 years) 

goals and actions to be taken as steps in realising the 

Biodiversity Vision, which is the long term (50 years) 

goal. The ECP includes the ecoregional action plan and 

the national action plans of Indonesia, Malaysia and the 

Philippines, that are consistent with and are aligned to 

national plans and programmes as well as each country’s 

international agreements and commitments. 

3.  ”Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion” means an ecoregion, 

covering an area of approximately a million square 

kilometers, shared by Indonesia, Malaysia and the 

Philippines and includes the Sulu Sea and Sulawesi Sea.

ARTICLE II

ECOREGION CONSERVATION PLAN (ECP)

The Parties, subject to the terms of this Memorandum of 

Understanding and the laws, national policies, rules and 

regulations of each country, shall undertake necessary 

measures to formally adopt the ECP and its incorporation 

into their respective National Plans. 

ARTICLE III

AREAS OF CO-OPERATION

1.  The Parties shall, subject to their respective national 

policies, laws, rules and regulations from time to time in 

force governing the subject matter in their respective 

countries, endeavour to take necessary steps to 

encourage, facilitate and promote co-operation in the 

areas identifi ed in the ECP which are as follows: 

a.  establishment of management strategies and 

co-ordinated institutions for eff ective ecoregion 

conservation;

b.  establishment of a functional integrated network 

of priority conservation areas to ensure ecological 

integrity; 

c.  development of sustainable livelihood systems 

that support marine and coastal conservation 

across the ecoregion;

d.  shaping of economic development compatible 

with biodiversity conservation;

e.  enhancement of understanding of biodiversity 

resources and factors aff ecting them to form basis 

for management decisions;

f.  development of communication, education and 

outreach programmes and strategies to motivate 

people to take conservation action;

g.  development of sustainable fi nancing mechanism 

to support cost of conservation and resource 

management; 

h.  building and enhancement of capacity of 

stakeholders to eff ectively manage the 

conservation of SSME;

i.  implementation of coordinated protection of 

threatened marine species to ensure maintenance 

of viable populations and protection of critical 

habitat; and

j.  improvement of coastal, oceanic and other types of 

---