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Participants at the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress (WPC) met in Plenary throughout the day to consider the Congress Outputs, including the Durban Accord and Action Plan, the WPC Recommendations and the Message to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and their implementation.

Juan Mayr, former Colombian Minister of Environment, chaired the session.

On recognizing the importance of PAs, Carabias called for awareness raising on ways to improve rural sustainability, and stressed the value of traditional knowledge. She called for the diversification of legal frameworks, planning and management, and community initiatives.

On innovations for delivering quality PA management, Bakarr said standardized procedures are required to evaluate the effectiveness of diverse management strategies. He stressed the need for commitment from the private sector, indigenous communities and international organizations.

On local communities, Carabias said recognizing communities’ rights is key to strengthening their capacity to identify and address their needs.

Regarding the equitable sharing of PA costs and benefits, Bakarr noted the need to identify the value of PAs to society and their impact on communities. Stressing that only 20% of PA management costs are currently met, he said participants recommended increasing funding by US$ 15 billion, expanding funding sources, and removing policy and institutional barriers to funding.

On partnerships, Carabias said new governance models are required to increase public involvement in decision making and management, as well as different types of partnerships, including those for training and capacity building.

On filling the gaps in the PA network, Bakarr identified inadequate coverage at the species, habitat and ecosystem level. He stressed the need to use planning tools and science, be strategic and adopt targets, and increase resources for research.

Regarding necessary innovations, Bakarr emphasized evaluating management effectiveness and making sure that technical tools to increase understanding of biophysical changes, such as remote sensing, are accessible.

On linking PAs with wider development objectives, Carabias stressed the need for regulatory frameworks integrating conservation and development.

Bakarr highlighted the benefits of technologies, such as global positioning devices, in improving PA management, but said that a better understanding of ecological flows is required and that the threats posed by technological innovations should be addressed.

In relation to international cooperation, Carabias called for synergies between related treaties such as the CBD, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species and the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, noting the potential of PAs to offer a forum for those synergies. Emphasizing the need for capacity building, she outlined other areas for cooperation, including: NGOs’ contribution to long-term governmental strategies; the Protected Areas Learning Network; World Heritage sites; mobile people and transboundary PAs.

Claude Martin, WWF Director General, highlighted the high level and wide-ranging participation at the Vth WPC. He said PAs should not be considered as a panacea for conservation, and stressed the need to continue and extend the dialogue with extractive industries.

Recalling relevant WSSD commitments, Sweder van Voorst tot Voorst, Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, noted that PAs have become part of the sustainable development agenda, and stressed the need for integrated poverty reduction strategies.

Patricia Luna del Pozo, youth representative, called for: moving from confrontation to dialogue to create necessary partnerships; developing young professionals’ training; and increasing youth involvement in PA management and at the next WPC.

Acknowledging the controversy regarding the extractive industry, David Richards, International Council on Mining and Minerals, said dialogue can only be constructive when all parties demonstrate their commitment.

Anoushiravan Najafi, Deputy to the Vice President of Iran, called for practical approaches to PA management, use of traditional knowledge, and a change in governments’ view that nature is merely a resource to exploit.

Jannie Lasimbang, Asia Indigenous People Pact, said indigenous communities have been ignored in the international debate, asked for respect for customary laws, and advocated community prior informed consent.

Stressing that biodiversity conservation does not exclude social and economic development, Antonio Waldez Goés da Silva, Governor of Amapá State, Brazil, said 70% of the State has been designated as a PA.

Peter Seligmann, CI, called on world leaders to form a political conservation block to encourage the G-8 to increase funding, and said that if only health and poverty issues are addressed, the environment will never be sufficiently protected.

Boku Tache, World Alliance of Mobile Indigenous Peoples, said his alliance’s objectives are to: establish solidarity among mobile indigenous peoples worldwide; achieve sustainable livelihoods; and promote just policies.

Calling for increased PA quality rather than quantity, Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, Minister of Environment of Costa Rica, said the costs of PA establishment are not equitably distributed between developing and developed countries.

Achim Steiner, IUCN Director General, thanked the host country and all the organizing teams. He highlighted the contributions of Kenton Miller, WCPA, and David Sheppard, IUCN, and presented a plaque to Valli Moosa in recognition of his work in conservation.

Plodprasop Suraswadi, Thai Ministry for Natural Resources and Environment, invited participants to the 3rd World Conservation Congress in Bangkok, 17-25 November 2004. Participants watched a short video on WCP participants’ impressions, prepared by the IUCN Commission on Communication and Education.

Jacob Zuma, Deputy President of South Africa, said the WPC has laid the foundation for a new paradigm in conservation, in which the synergies between the conservation and development agendas are recognized, and benefits from PAs are shared beyond boundaries and across societies, cultures and generations. Noting that the approach to management needs to be innovative, adaptive, and based on indigenous and scientific knowledge, he said this paradigm would enable the development of new financial and income generating strategies. Identifying protection of the African environment as one of the priorities of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, he said that the the Durban Consensus on African Protected Areas for the New Millennium establishes a 10-point agenda for strengthening PA work in the continent.

Olver then closed the meeting at 4:55 pm.