The Ministry of Environment and Water (MoEW) was part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) delegation that recently took part in the 7th Meeting of Signatory States of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the Conservation and Management of Marine Turtles and their Habitats of the Indian Ocean and South-East Asia (IOSEA), which was held from September 8 to September 11, 2014 in Bonn, Germany. Other government agencies that joined the UAE delegation were the Abu Dhabi Environment Agency and the Environment and Protected Areas Authority (EPAA) of the Government of Sharjah. The international event was attended by high-level representatives from 35 countries.

The UAE’s participation in the event is part of the country’s ongoing efforts to protect sea turtles and preserve their natural habitats and ecosystems, which in turn, helps promote environmental sustainability as a priority of UAE Vision 2021. The meeting is one of the most prominent world events concerning conservation of sea turtles in the IOSEA region.

During the meeting, the UAE was named as the most  Improvedcountry in annual report writing and discussed sites to be considered among the Network of Sites of Importance for Marine Turtles. Both of the country’s nominated sites - Bu Tinah Island in Abu Dhabi and Sir Bu Nair Island in Sharjah – were approved to be considered as sites of importance for marine turtles. The UAE further showcased its efforts to preserve sea turtles through the creation and issuance of relevant laws and regulations and the development of research and studies like satellite tracking and monitoring of sea turtle nests. The meeting discussed the results of these studies and shed light on the challenges of the north-west region of the Indian Ocean to find effective solutions to protect and preserve these sea creatures.

The UAE joined the IOSEA Marine Turtle Memorandum of Understanding in 2007. The agreement aims to set cooperative measures for the conservation and management of marine turtles and their habitats in the IOSEA region, as well as improve dedicated protection systems of relevance. The UAE’s joining of the MoU demonstrates its commitment to preserve marine turtles and their natural habitats, as the country embraces different types of marine turtles residing in its regional waters.