 The
11th Advisory Committee of EUROBATS was successfully concluded
10 May in Luxembourg, one of the first seven signatories to
the Agreement. Since its inception in 1987 EUROBATS has increased
its membership to 31 Parties. Thus it has contributed to strengthening
CMS identity within the growing number of multilateral environmental
agreements. Both Secretariats share a common vision and strategy
for the CMS Family of Agreements.
With the launch of the first European Bat Night ten years
ago, the Agreement has achieved in raising considerable
public awareness on the need for conserving bats. Conservation
actions that include communities and involve directly the
general public contribute to a better understanding of biodiversity
and fragile ecosystems. This provides the political acceptance
for a better, more comprehensive conservation of bats and
their habitats.
The Agreement has discussed the establishment of a Standing
Committee. Institutional arrangements for scientific and
technical work as well as for the administrative work may
follow. The setting up of an implementation mechanism tailored
to EUROBATS to enhance law enforcement to protect bats would
be major achievement in the evolution of the bats agreement.
Another substantial outcome of the Meeting is a consolidated
budget to ensure the efficiency of a small Agreement in
terms of administration for the next triennium.
CMS Executive Secretary Robert Hepworth emphasized progress
made so far and looks forward to the next Meeting of the
Parties, which is likely to be another milestone in EUROBATS
history. Recommendations made at the Meeting will be forwarded
to the MOP. He also draw the attention of the delegates
to the future work for the development of the African Bats
Agreement. This new geographical scope will be a major step
towards conserving bats around the world.
Click here to download the statement by Robert Hepworth
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