Sustainable Environment Key to Economic Growth and Poverty Reduction in Mekong, Says First Atlas of GMS
MANILA, PHILIPPINES
Environmental degradation remains one of the most pressing challenges in the countries sharing the Mekong River - a region rich in resources but with a high poverty rate. With wise stewardship of the environment and natural resources, the countries can ensure sustainable livelihoods for their people. http://www.adb.org/Poverty/
That is the message of the Greater Mekong Subregion Atlas of the Environment, the first book of its kind celebrating the GMS, jointly published Monday by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
The Atlas provides comprehensive environmental information, the scarcity of which is a major constraint on sustainable development planning and decision-making in the subregion. About 250 million people, most of them in rural areas, inhabit the five countries and one province of the subregion: Cambodia, Yunnan Province of the People's Republic of China, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam.
Extensively illustrated by photographs, maps, remote sensing images, tables, graphs and text, the Atlas showcases the wealth of the region's natural resources - including water, minerals, energy, wetlands, forestlands, biodiversity, protected areas, agriculture and fisheries - and the efforts being made to tackle the region's environmental problems. It also discusses the relationship between the environment and the peoples of the GMS. http://www.adb.org/GMS
In recent decades, the environment, along with poverty, has moved to center stage as a critical issue. There is now wider realization that these concerns are closely related and that poverty reduction and environment protection are mutually supportive in the long run.
In the Foreword of the Atlas, ADB President Tadao Chino and UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer note that, "The Atlas clearly demonstrates how the countries of the subregion are bound by shared natural resources, the commonality of the challenges facing these countries, and the need for subregional cooperation in conserving the environment to enable them to pursue sustainable development goals." They also cite the commitment of the Leaders of the GMS countries to this objective as shown in their 2002 Summit declaration which said: "We must and will better protect our environment. We will take responsibility and leadership for the sustainable management of our natural and shared resources."
The book forms part of a major effort to promote regional cooperation on the environment under the GMS Program, which ADB has assisted since the Program began in 1992.
At the Atlas launch ceremony today, Mr. Chino called on all stakeholders in the GMS region to work hand in hand for the preservation of the environment for the benefit of future generations. ADB and UNEP are working closely with environmental issues and help provide for a sustainable future for the subregion.
A Celebration in Words and Pictures of Five Countries and a Province
The Greater Mekong Subregion Atlas of the Environment, launched at ADB Headquarters Monday, champions the environment of a unique part of Asia, an area that encompasses six culturally, ethnically, and linguistically diverse areas.
About 250 million people, most of them in rural areas, occupy the subregion's five countries and one province: Cambodia, Yunnan Province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam.
They are linked by the mighty Mekong, the longest river in Southeast Asia. Making its way over 4,200 kilometers, the Mekong endows the subregion with a rich natural resource base. These natural resources provide both sustenance and income to the great majority of peoples in the subregion who are leading subsistence or near-subsistence lifestyles.
Published by ADB and the United Nations Environment Programme, the GMS Atlas, through detailed maps, photographs, remote sensing images, tables, graphs, and text, for the first time shows the wealth of the subregion's natural resources, the growing seriousness of environmental degradation, and the efforts being made to tackle these challenges.
The book is arranged in six parts.
· Part I provides an overview and brief geographical, economic, and social profiles of the countries that make up the subregion.
· Part II discusses the state of natural resources and environment - the watersheds, rivers, minerals, forests, wetlands, flora, and fauna - their uses in agriculture, fisheries, and industry, and the conservation of biodiversity in protected areas.
· Part III presents the peoples of the subregion, highlighting the extent of their dependence on natural resources, and showing why sustaining the environment is important for poverty reduction.
· Part IV outlines development trends in the subregion, the challenges they pose to environmental resources, and the responses needed to meet these challenges by various international organizations and the countries themselves.
· Part V presents a series of remote sensing images that provide a representative sample of the subregion's geographical diversity.
· Part VI provides more than 120 tables of statistical information on a wide range of environmental aspects of the subregion, references to the literature and Internet sites where more details can be found, and a glossary of various terms used in the Atlas.
The GMS Atlas (ISBN: 971-561-499-X), containing 224 pages, is published in hardback for $60 and softback for $40, including postage. A CD-ROM is also available containing the entire Atlas in PDF format, costing $10, including postage.
The Atlas is available by e-mailing adbpub@adb.org.
The Atlas can be ordered through http://www.adb.org/Publications
For further inquiries, please contact:
ADB : Tsukasa Maekawa at mtmaekawa@adb.org
UNEP : Tim Higham at mhigham@un.org
Asian Development Bank http://www.adb.org/default.asp
GMS Atlas references:
Cambodia http://www.adb.org/Cambodia/
People’s Republic of China http://www.adb.org/PRC
Lao People’s Democratic Republic http://www.adb.org/LaoPDR
Myanmar http://www.adb.org/Myanmar
Thailand http://www.adb.org/Thailand
Socialist Republic of Vietnam http://www.adb.org/VietNam
Please also see:
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) http://www.unep.org
MANILA, PHILIPPINES
Environmental degradation remains one of the most pressing challenges in the countries sharing the Mekong River - a region rich in resources but with a high poverty rate. With wise stewardship of the environment and natural resources, the countries can ensure sustainable livelihoods for their people. http://www.adb.org/Poverty/
That is the message of the Greater Mekong Subregion Atlas of the Environment, the first book of its kind celebrating the GMS, jointly published Monday by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
The Atlas provides comprehensive environmental information, the scarcity of which is a major constraint on sustainable development planning and decision-making in the subregion. About 250 million people, most of them in rural areas, inhabit the five countries and one province of the subregion: Cambodia, Yunnan Province of the People's Republic of China, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam.
Extensively illustrated by photographs, maps, remote sensing images, tables, graphs and text, the Atlas showcases the wealth of the region's natural resources - including water, minerals, energy, wetlands, forestlands, biodiversity, protected areas, agriculture and fisheries - and the efforts being made to tackle the region's environmental problems. It also discusses the relationship between the environment and the peoples of the GMS. http://www.adb.org/GMS
In recent decades, the environment, along with poverty, has moved to center stage as a critical issue. There is now wider realization that these concerns are closely related and that poverty reduction and environment protection are mutually supportive in the long run.
In the Foreword of the Atlas, ADB President Tadao Chino and UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer note that, "The Atlas clearly demonstrates how the countries of the subregion are bound by shared natural resources, the commonality of the challenges facing these countries, and the need for subregional cooperation in conserving the environment to enable them to pursue sustainable development goals." They also cite the commitment of the Leaders of the GMS countries to this objective as shown in their 2002 Summit declaration which said: "We must and will better protect our environment. We will take responsibility and leadership for the sustainable management of our natural and shared resources."
The book forms part of a major effort to promote regional cooperation on the environment under the GMS Program, which ADB has assisted since the Program began in 1992.
At the Atlas launch ceremony today, Mr. Chino called on all stakeholders in the GMS region to work hand in hand for the preservation of the environment for the benefit of future generations. ADB and UNEP are working closely with environmental issues and help provide for a sustainable future for the subregion.
A Celebration in Words and Pictures of Five Countries and a Province
The Greater Mekong Subregion Atlas of the Environment, launched at ADB Headquarters Monday, champions the environment of a unique part of Asia, an area that encompasses six culturally, ethnically, and linguistically diverse areas.
About 250 million people, most of them in rural areas, occupy the subregion's five countries and one province: Cambodia, Yunnan Province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam.
They are linked by the mighty Mekong, the longest river in Southeast Asia. Making its way over 4,200 kilometers, the Mekong endows the subregion with a rich natural resource base. These natural resources provide both sustenance and income to the great majority of peoples in the subregion who are leading subsistence or near-subsistence lifestyles.
Published by ADB and the United Nations Environment Programme, the GMS Atlas, through detailed maps, photographs, remote sensing images, tables, graphs, and text, for the first time shows the wealth of the subregion's natural resources, the growing seriousness of environmental degradation, and the efforts being made to tackle these challenges.
The book is arranged in six parts.
· Part I provides an overview and brief geographical, economic, and social profiles of the countries that make up the subregion.
· Part II discusses the state of natural resources and environment - the watersheds, rivers, minerals, forests, wetlands, flora, and fauna - their uses in agriculture, fisheries, and industry, and the conservation of biodiversity in protected areas.
· Part III presents the peoples of the subregion, highlighting the extent of their dependence on natural resources, and showing why sustaining the environment is important for poverty reduction.
· Part IV outlines development trends in the subregion, the challenges they pose to environmental resources, and the responses needed to meet these challenges by various international organizations and the countries themselves.
· Part V presents a series of remote sensing images that provide a representative sample of the subregion's geographical diversity.
· Part VI provides more than 120 tables of statistical information on a wide range of environmental aspects of the subregion, references to the literature and Internet sites where more details can be found, and a glossary of various terms used in the Atlas.
The GMS Atlas (ISBN: 971-561-499-X), containing 224 pages, is published in hardback for $60 and softback for $40, including postage. A CD-ROM is also available containing the entire Atlas in PDF format, costing $10, including postage.
The Atlas is available by e-mailing adbpub@adb.org.
The Atlas can be ordered through http://www.adb.org/Publications
For further inquiries, please contact:
ADB : Tsukasa Maekawa at mtmaekawa@adb.org
UNEP : Tim Higham at mhigham@un.org
Asian Development Bank http://www.adb.org/default.asp
GMS Atlas references:
Cambodia http://www.adb.org/Cambodia/
People’s Republic of China http://www.adb.org/PRC
Lao People’s Democratic Republic http://www.adb.org/LaoPDR
Myanmar http://www.adb.org/Myanmar
Thailand http://www.adb.org/Thailand
Socialist Republic of Vietnam http://www.adb.org/VietNam
Please also see:
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) http://www.unep.org