EAAFP Finance Sub-Committee Workshop

From 4^th to 6^th September 2019 a workshop for developing an EAAFP Resourcing Plan for the implementation of the new EAAP Strategic Plan 2019-2028 was organized in Sungei Buloh Wetland Centre in Singapore. In 2018. the Partners at 10^th EAAFP Meeting of Partners (MOP10) endorsed a development of an EAAFP Resourcing Plan to assist in delivery of the EAAFP Strategic Plan 2019-2028 over 10 year life. The Resourcing Plan will establish priorities for funding for the first 2 years of the Strategic Plan. Since the prior Finance Sub-Committee meeting held in August 2018 in Songdo, RO Korea, the Finance Sub-Committee members have endeavored to identify priority Key Results Areas (KRA) and three driving elements (Enabling-Impactive-Urgency) to guide on setting the funding priorities.

For 2 days in Singapore, the participants of the workshop (list of names – below) had in-depth discussion to develop the Resourcing Plan with the facilitation by Mr. Martin Spray, the Chair of EAAFP Finance Sub-Committee.

As a result, a draft Strategic Plan Resourcing Assessment was developed. The document works to show the total cost of each KRA, amount of funding secured per KRA and ultimately the total budget gap to be mobilized from various sources of funds in joint efforts. The workshop had benefitted from the initial feedback from the Government of Australia on the template development. On Wednesday, 4^th September, the participants went over all KRAs against the three driving elements (Enabling-Impactive-Urgency) and sorted out which KRAs should be included in the Resourcing Plan or be included in a separate companion document. During the break-out session, the participants were divided into two groups and filled the elements of the Resourcing Assessment with reference to the Secretariat Work Plan 2019-2020, implementation of MOP10 Decisions, the works of Working Groups, Task Forces and Committees to be financed. On the second day of 5^th September, participants continued the discussions to complete the elements of the Strategic Plan Resourcing Assessment. Amount of total cost and secured funding, and funding sources of each KRAs activity were elaborated throughout the sessions.

A welcome reception was organized in the evening of 4^th September, inviting all workshop participants and some corporate guests based in Singapore. Mr. Martin Spray delivered a presentation to introduce the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership and potential opportunities for collaboration between the corporate sector and EAAFP.

Next day on 5^th September, the same workshop also had a session on EAAFP’s corporate engagement guidelines. Mr. Martin Spray shared the WWT’s Corporates Partnership Policy and led the discussion on how EAAFP can effectively engage the corporate sector in view of resourcing the Strategic Plan as well as promoting the EAAFP brand. The Participants noted the needs of developing principles of engaging the corporate sector and agreed that the principles are presented at MOP11. The last day of the workshop on 6^th September concluded with a joyful field trip in Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve arranged by the National Parks Board Singapore.

Participants List

Finance Sub-Committee: Mr. Martin Spray (Chief Executive of Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and EAAFP Finance Sub-Committee Chair), Ms. Alison Russell-French (Australasian Wader Studies Group), Ms. Tomoko Ichikawa (Ministry of Environment, Japan), Mr. Spike Millington (International Crane Foundation)
Partners: Ms. Yang Shufen (National Parks Board, Singapore), Mr. David Melville (Pukorokoro Miranda Naturalists’ Trust, EAAFP Technical Sub-Committee Vice Chair), Mr. Menard Putungan (ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity), Ms. Arkellah Irving (Chair of CEPA Working Group), Mr. Bruce McKinlay (New Zealand Government), Mr. Doug Watkins (AWSG), Mr. Phil Straw (CEPA Working Group)
EAAFP Secretariat: Hyeseon Do, Ms. Yoon Lee and Ms. Sojung Kang

The EAAFP Secretariat and Finance Sub-Committee greatly appreciates the generous support from the National Parks Board Singapore to host the workshop.