February 6, 2017: ‘It is ours to preserve’, words of Senator the Honourable Clarence Rambharat, Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries as he delivered the Feature Address at a Ceremony in celebration of World Wetlands Day 2017, under the theme ‘Wetlands for Disaster Risk Reduction’ held on Friday 3rd February, 2017 at the Nariva Swamp. The event was hosted in collaboration with the Environmental Management Authority and the Green Fund.
His words highlighted the main timbre of his Address which stressed ‘action and impact’, calling on officers to ‘do what they have to do in support of the farmer, the fisherfolk, the hunters’. Echoing the refrain of the Honourable Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago who is often heard saying ‘when we do that’ or ‘if we do that’, the Minister said that ‘do’ is one of the most powerful verbs. ‘There has been a lot of talk about the environment, sustainability and protected areas; and these protected areas are critical to this country … what we need is to put an end to the talk, what we need now is convergence … some of this can be achieved through the newly established Protected Areas Working Group … meant to sift through legislation, draft legislation, all that has been discussed re. policy changes, etc. and provide for the Government a clear path ahead in terms of what we need to do … what is the form of the legislation so that we can manage our protected areas’. The Minister also noted that there must be a framework which secures our country’s assets – both environmentally and economically, whilst including community engagement and involvement.
Mrs. Christine Newallo-Hosein, Member of Parliament – Cumuto/Manzanilla; Mr. Glen Ram, Chairman, Mayaro Rio Claro Regional Corporation; Ms. Judy Daniel, Deputy Chairman, Environmental Management Authority; Dr. Stephen Ramroop, Chief Executive Officer, Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management; Mrs. Neila Bobb-Prescott, Chief Technical Advisor, Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations; and Mr. John Radgman, Conservator of Forests all spoke at the event. Mrs. Newallo-Hosein urged all to become ‘an eye and an ear to protect our wetlands since they sustain lives’; noting that ‘we won’t have a future if we do not have the environment’. Dr. Ramroop reminded all that ‘risk is proportional to exposure’; and Mrs. Bobb-Prescott noted that the plans on forestry management is simply to ‘ensure that we do not overdo it’ and maintain what is ours.
Students were very much a part of the event, with Kleene Trotman, Joanna Andrews and Josiah Woods, Standard Four students of the Mayaro Government Primary starting off the morning’s session when they represented the audience in prayer; the national anthem was played on pan by young Farhanah Seemungal, a Standard Five student of San Fernando TML Primary School; a poem titled ‘Save our Wetlands’ was performed by Alisha Housend, a Standard Five student of the St Thomas RC School; and young Jayden Francois with four of his classmates, all Standard Five students of the Ortoire RC School, delivering a stirring performance with a calypso on Cyber Bullying.
In the audience were Senator Avinash Singh, Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries, Mr. Claudelle Mc Kellar, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries, Mr. Andre Laveau, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries, Mr. Hayden Romano, Managing Director, Environmental Management Authority; Directors and staff of the Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries; Representatives of International and Regional Agriculture Organisations; Chairmen, Directors, Management and Staff of State Agencies; Community Representatives; and School Principals, teachers and children from various surrounding schools, including Mayaro Government Primary, Mayaro Secondary, Ortoire RC, St Thomas RC, Mafeking Early Childhood Centre, Biche Presbyterian Primary, Biche RC Primary, Plum Road Presbyterian Primary, Plum Mitan Presbyterian Primary and Biche High School.
Fun activities for the students included a Mobile Zoo, access to the Forestry Bus and an iterative tour of the Nariva Swamp in the Conference Room of the Field Station.
World Wetlands Day is celebrated every year on 2nd February which commemorates the day governments of countries across the globe signed the Convention on Wetlands in the city of Ramsar in Iran in 1971. This convention is commonly known as the Ramsar Convention. Its mission is ‘the conservation and wise use of wetlands by national and international cooperation as a means of achieving sustainable throughout the world.’
https://www.dropbox.com/s/vkqkdapij8cogxz/SOTs%20%26%20VOs.mp4?dl=0
See above link for interviews.
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