• EAAFP engagement at the ADB 56th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors

    Panel Discussion at the side event “The Steps for Making the Regional Flyway Initiative a Reality” ⓒ EAAFP Secretariat The 56th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of Asian Development Bank (ADB), hosted by the Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Korea, was held in Songdo, Incheon, Republic of Korea, from 2nd to 5th May 2023. The theme of the 56th ADB Annual Meeting is “Rebounding Asia: Recover, Reconnect, and Reform”. About 5,000 people, including finance ministers and central bank governors from ADB members, and representatives from the government and private sectors, local and international organizations, and the press participated in meetings, seminars, and side events to discuss various topics regarding development in Asia. A side event on the Regional Flyway Initiative, co-organized by ADB, BirdLife International and EAAFP was held on 2nd May. Regional Flyway Initiative Side event During the side event entitled “The Steps for Making the Regional Flyway Initiative a Reality” (link) held on 2nd May, panelists discussed the ongoing process since the launch of the RFI and to underline actions needed to facilitate its progress from the development phase into the implementation phase. ⓒ Asian Development Bank The event was moderated by Ms. Patricia Zurita, Chief Executive Officer of BirdLife International. Ambassador Chantale Yok-Min Wong, (United States Ambassador toADB) gave an opening remark emphasizing the need for the long-term commitment and cooperation between ADB and the US. Following was the panel discussion. Our Senior Programme Officer, Ms. Hyeseon Do, participated as a panelist, together with Mr. Weihua Liu (People’s Republic of China Executive Director, ADB), Ahmed Saeed (Vice-President for East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific, ADB) Ms. Elisea G. Gozun (Chair of Compliance Review Panel, ADB)  to discuss how to make the RFI feasible. They all highlighted that the national/international cooperation among people including ADB Board members and organizations, as well as wetlands conservation, is crucial to successfully implement the RFI. After the discussion, Mr. Jae Young Shin, Director of the Maritime Policy Office, Maritime Ecology Division of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Republic of Korea, gave a message of future support by highlighting future conservation cooperation between the ADB and Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and Ms. Dawn Bennet, Ambassador to Republic of Korea, New Zealand Government, delivered a closing remarks to encourage transboundary conservation efforts. Engaging at ADB 56th Annual Meeting events The EAAFP staff participated in several side events and seminars, such as a program called “Civic Engagement and Multi-Stakeholder Partnership for SDGs in Asia”, a side event called “Digital, Climate, and Resilience”, “The Green Transition, Needs a Green Workforce: The Role of Skills Development for a Just Transition”, etc. From the side events, a key lesson learned was that the engagement of multi stakeholders including civil society and youths is crucial to the implementation of projects related to SDGs. In line with the EAAFP’s mission, cooperation among various sectors is highly significant to conservation activities. One of the key agendas discussed during side events was the role of climate finance in the funding of projects and initiatives related to climate change mitigation. They provided information regarding future investments as well as how organizations may access these funds. This knowledge may prove valuable if the EAAFP or its Partners were to seek funding for projects in the future. A booth of the Regional Flyway Initiative (RFI) and the Jiangsu Yancheng Wetlands Protection Project prepared by the ADB-PRC Regional Knowledge Sharing Initiative (RKSI) was presented. The booth also had a virtual reality (VR) activity where with the VR headset people can look around several Flyway Network Sites and tablets where people could scan each picture on the booth wall regarding the investment in the RFI, RFI areas, and Asia and the Pacific’s climate risk, and receive information relevant to the picture. The tablets also showed a map of migratory birds’ flyways and the information about each site so people visiting the booth could learn about the importance of conservation of migratory birds and their habitats. The EAAFP staff also visited several other booths form the Incheon City, various corporates and organizations where people could do various activities, participated in the activities to introduce the EAAFP and RFI, and learn about the other institutions’ work. Booth at the meeting ⓒ EAAFP Secretariat EAAFP Secretariat also contributed to a 1-minute interview video with ADB to promote the RFI (Twitter, Instagram). Ms. Hyeseon Do mentioned that we should take immediate action to conserve migratory waterbirds and their habitats, to fight against ecosystem degradation by humans and mitigate climate change. Also, together with ADB and Birdlife International, EAAFP will try to develop the RFI and scale up nature-based solutions to combat environmental challenges by conserving the wetlands in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. ⓒ EAAFP Secretariat Guided by staff from the Secretariat before the meeting, the RFI organizers team from BirdLife International and ADB visited several migratory birds’ habitats in Incheon, such as Songdo Flyway Network Site and Ramsar Site, Ganghwa Island, and Namdong Reservoir (breeding site for Black-faced Spoonbill) and Sorae Wetland Park. Ms. Patricia Zurita (CEO), Mr. Vinayagan Dharmarajah (Regional Director for Asia), Mr. Gary Allport (Senior Adviser to the CEO) from BirdLife International, and Mr. Duncan Lang (Senior Environment Specialist) from ADB visited the EAAFP Secretariat after the RFI side event on the 2nd May. Group photo with Ms. Patricia Zurita, Mr. Vinayagan Dharmarajah, Mr. Gary Allport from BirdLife International, and Mr. Duncan Lang from ADB visited EAAFP Secretariat © EAAFP Secretariat Left to right: Mr. Duncan Lang and Mr. Warren Evans from Mr. Gary Allport © EAAFP Secretariat About Regional Flyway Initiative Launched in October 2021 at the 15th Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP15), Regional Flyway Initiative (RFI) is a large-scale long-term financing initiative by the ADB, EAAFP, and BirdLife International to support the conservation, restoration, and efficient management of wetlands in the EAA Flyway. A partnership of multiple stakeholders will collaborate to develop the RFI program, scaling up the Flyway-wide conservation efforts to protect wetlands and the migratory waterbirds and the lives of the people who are dependent on them. The initiative aim to build and protect an ecological network of at least 50 priority sites over the next 10 years. For more information on RFI, click here.


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  • Announcement of EAAFP Partners Workshop leading up to MOP 11

    In preparation of and to increase dialogue with and between Partners in the months leading up to MOP11, which will be held in Brisbane Australia, from 12th – 17th March 2023, the Secretariat is organizing a series of webinars endorsed by the EAAFP Management Committee with the following schedule and program. The webinar series will give Partners the opportunity to be briefed on important ongoing activities of the Secretariat and follow-up on Decisions made at MOP10. The EAAFP Secretariat is inviting all Partners to mark these dates and participate in the webinars. Title: EAAFP Partners Workshop lead up to MOP 11 Date/Time: 1 – 5 August 2022; 15:00 – 17:30 KST Organizers: EAAFP Secretariat and Management Committee Participants: EAAFP Partners, EAAFP Working Groups and Task Forces, Flyway Network Site Managers Language: English Meeting Platform: Zoom Register: https://cutt.ly/dJJgCmV *We invite everyone to join as many sessions as possible EAAFP Provisional Programme Day Programme Presenter/Moderator Day 1 Opening Remarks Robb Kaler, MC Chair Briefing on MOP11 Doug Watkins, Secretariat Chief Executive/Nick Davidson, TsC Chair Activities of the Management Committee Robb Kaler, MC Chair Report on the Secretariat’s workplan and budget Doug Watkins, Secretariat Chief Executive Day 2 Presentation on the Partner New Reporting Template for MOP11 Doug Watkins, Secretariat Chief Executive Interactive Session 1: How to increase the effectiveness of Working Group/Task Forces for EAAFP, following up on the Discussion Paper presented at MoP10 (link). (TBC) Day 3 MOP10 DD08: EAAFP Guidelines for National and Site Partnerships (link) Jennifer George, Consultant MOP10 DD 09: EAAFP Guidelines for the Sister Site Program (link) Day 4 Presentation on the revised CEPA Action Plan 2023 – 2028 Casey Burns, CEPA Working Group Chair Update on the ADB Regional Flyway Initiative Duncan Lang, Asian Development Bank /Doug Watkins, Secretariat Chief Executive /Ding Li, BirdLife International Day 5 Conservation Status Review of Migratory Waterbird Populations for the EAAFP [MOP10 DD 12] / Q&A Taej Mundkur, Consultant to Wetlands International Interactive Session 2: How to expand, strengthen and engage the Flyway Site Network, including adopting a more simplified and focused nomination form (SIS)  Nick Davidson, TsC Chair/Qing Zeng, Science Officer Closing Remarks Robb Kaler, MC Chair For inquiries, please email to secretariat@eaaflyway.net.


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  • Official Launching of the Regional Flyways Initiative Webpage

    The EAAFP Secretariat is pleased to announce the release of a webpage built up for the Regional Flyway Initiative (RFI). The page was set up to archive RFI-related documents, articles, media, and events for information sharing. A brief introduction of RFI, key documents (RFI Technical Assistance Report and EAAFP Strategic Plan 2019-2028), a list of meetings and webinars, articles, and publications linked to RFI are also available. Link: https://www.eaaflyway.net/regional-flyway-initiative/ The Regional Flyway Initiative was launched in October 2021 by joint efforts with Asian Development Bank, EAAFP, and BirdLife International at the Ecological Civilization Forum of the 15th Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP15). The Regional Flyway Initiative seeks to develop a long-term financing program to protect and restore EAAF wetland ecosystems and the services they provide. RFI aims to mobilize large-scale financing to support the protection, maintenance, and restoration of wetlands in East and Southeast Asia, especially coastal wetlands. The initiative aims to strengthen the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands across the region, which are crucial for the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people and the migratory waterbirds in Asia and the Pacific. This will be achieved through partnerships among governments, non-government organizations, local communities, regional organizations, development agencies, private sectors, and other stakeholders.


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  • 2021 in Review: Work and achievements of EAAFP Partners and Secretariat

    Development of the Flyway Site Network 1. Welcome Taehwa River in Ro Korea and Sarobetsu Wetland in Japan as New Flyway Network Sites In 2021, two new Flyway Network Sites…


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  • What COP26 brought to EAAFP

    From 31 October to 12 November 2021, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) was held in Glasgow, UK, co-hosted by…


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  • “Discussing The East Asian – Australasian Flyway Initiative” webinar

    Following the launch of the Regional Flyway Initiative, on 10th November, a webinar “Discussing the East Asian Australasian Flyway Initiative” was organized…


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  • UNFCCC COP26 playback: “Scaling up the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Initiative”

    On 2nd November, a side event “Scaling up the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Initiative” was organized at the United Nations Framework Convention on…


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