The High-Level Ministerial Segment, held from May 28 to May 30 at the World Conference Centre, was officially launched by German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Representatives, including Heads of State and Government, delivered statements on their concrete commitments for preserving biological diversity and ecological systems.

Meanwhile, 7,000 participants welcomed Brunei as the 191st party to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) held from May 19 to May 30.

Brunei's membership to this international treaty is timely in the country's efforts in the implementation of the Declaration on the Heart of Borneo (HoB) Initiative and will become effective July 27 this year.

The CBD puts focus on the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components, and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits from the use of generic resources.

Brunei's HoB initiative echoes their goals as a voluntary trans-boundary cooperation initiative undertaken with the governments of Indonesia and Malaysia to ensure the effective management of forest resources and conservation of a network of protected area, productive forests and other sustainable land uses for the benefit of present and future generations.

Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary of the CBD, during his visit to the state in January this year, supported the endorsement of the HoB initiative as "a firm step forward toward achieving the 2010 Biodiversity Target, and implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity's programmes of work on protected areas and forest biological diversity".

Protection and conservation of the environment have long been integral parts of the Brunei's development process, featuring in the national development plans since resumption of full sovereignty in 1984.

The current NDP builds on previous NDPs recognising a sustainable environment as one of the requirements in national development. The 2007-2012 NDP focuses on the protection and conservation of the environment and sustainability of the nation's natural resources by reducing the environmental pollutions to a minimum level, preventing the possible deterioration of the country's natural ecosystem and preserving the country's biodiversity.

In addition, B$128 million is set to be allocated to finance 19 environment-related projects selected for implementation during this period, to include the development of a Tropical Biodiversity Centre, projects for wasteland rehabilitation, the development of a Marine Park and a project on Marine Ecosystem and Environmental Management.

More than 50 per cent of Brunei's total land area remains covered by pristine primary rainforest.

The Reduced Cut Policy, introduced in 1990 by the Forestry Department, limits logging output to 100,000 cubic metres annually and a moratorium on the approval of new logging concessions will go towards ensuring that such primary rainforest cover is maintained.

On January 1, 2008, a moratorium on commercial fishing activities within three nautical miles from Brunei's shoreline was introduced in order to allow the natural replenishment of marine resources in Brunei waters.

Through the conservation and protection of biodiversity and the natural environment, the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources also hopes to spur Brunei's drive to diversify the economy through the development of environmentally sustainable industries such as non-timber forest product industries (for example bio-product industries such as the pharmaceutical, herbal and cosmetic industries) and eco and nature tourism.

As a member of the CBD, Brunei hopes to avail itself of the vast resources of experiences and technical expertise of other members in implementing our national strategies and plans on the environment in general and the conservation and protection of biological diversity in particular.

Having acceded to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in 2002 and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2007, Brunei is now a party to all three "Rio Conventions", so called because these three multilateral environmental treaties were opened for signature during the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in 1992 held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil also popularly known as the "Rio Earth Summit".

Brunei hopes to see continued cooperation and enhanced synergies in the implementation of these three conventions in order to meet their mutually supportive goals in conserving biological diversity and combating climate change.

The 10th Conference of the Parties, which will be hosted by Japan in October 2010, will assess progress made towards the achievement of the 2010 Biodiversity Target.