Meeting with the Prime Minister
WTG team at the PM’s office, led by the Board President (Constant Mbun Momballa), accompanied by Namata E (local Chief from Rio del Rey) to talk Tiko-Limbe and Rio del Rey, Bakassi Carbon Finance), facilitated by Chief Dr Okole Senior Adviser.
The Watershed Task Group delegation led by the Chairman of Watershed Task Group met with the prime minister's office.
During the meeting, Constant Mbun Momballa, the WTG Board Chairman, and Mr Namata Eshtor Sakwe, a local community representative from the Rio del Rey zone highlighted the potential of carbon finance to support ongoing environmental initiatives in the Tiko-Limbe, Rio del-Rey -Bakassi areas. They emphasized that such financing would help protect and preserve the mangrove forest ecosystem, promote reforestation efforts, support sustainable land management, and promote community livelihood activities in the region. By investing in projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions or capture carbon from the atmosphere, Tiko-Limbe and Rio del-Rey-Bakassi landscape would mitigate climate change, protect biodiversity, and generate revenue that can be reinvested into community development programs for individuals, households, villages, councils, and government.
The Prime Minister's office expressed keen interest in exploring this potential avenue for sustainable development in the Tiko-Limbe and Rio del Rey-Bakassi landscape.
This collaboration involving investors, government, and local communities is seen as a positive step towards harnessing innovative financing mechanisms to drive sustainable development outcomes at the local and national levels..
The Ministry of Environment Nature Protection and Sustainable Development (MINEPDEP), as the host to the Ramsar (Wetlands Convention) and REDD+ Committee, is already very set to operationalize and materialize the initiative in collaboration with key Ministries, including, Forestry and Wildlife Finance, Economy and Planning, Lands, Territorial Administration etc. The WTG team assumes a crucial technical advisory role within the Cameroon Mangrove and Wetlands Conservation Network. This networking initiative along the coast of Cameroon is a vital strategy for mangrove and wetlands conservation.
Studies carried out by WTG and Partners (CWCS, WWF, CBCS, Wetlands International, Pecten Cameroon, Koop Cameroon, WIWO), prefaced by His Excellency the Minister of Environment, Hele Pierre have identified Rio del Rey, Wouri Estuary, Lower Sanaga River as meeting criteria for Ramsar site designation due to their status as wetlands of international importance. While Rio del Rey has already attained Ramsar site status; efforts are underway to prepare Wouri Estuary and the Lower Sanaga including Lake Ossa for similar designation see (www.projects.wiwo.org or www.ramsar.org/wn/w.n.cameroon_bird_census.htm or (www.ramsar.org /wn/wn.cmeroon_coast_survey.pdf), www.wiwo.org/wiworeport83cameroon2007.pdf