Welcome to SCZMC

The five SAARC nations, apart from the three land-locked countries of Nepal, Afghanistan and Bhutan, are very sensitive to adverse effects on the coastal environment. The coastlines of these countries are washed by the Indian Ocean and the coastal zone is an essential part of the life support system of the region.

The five SAARC nations, apart from the three land-locked countries of Nepal, Afghanistan and Bhutan, are very sensitive to adverse effects on the coastal environment. The coastlines of these countries are washed by the Indian Ocean and the coastal zone is an essential part of the life support system of the region.

Over the last decade, the management of coastal resources for their sustainable use has become a critically important issue for the SAARC region. Included among these resources are some of the most extensive mangrove areas in the Indian Ocean and some of the world's least disturbed coral reefs. These coastal ecosystems have been subjected to increasing exploitation particularly over the last 20 years.

The broad priority areas for integrated coastal zone management in the SAARC region can be categorized under:

• Reduction of threats through exchange of information and experiences; 
• Building capacity at local, national and regional level;  
• Development of appropriate research and monitoring;  
• Review of the success of initiatives in these action areas.

The region as a whole has important assets of, human and institutional capacity in Institutional scientific, economic, social and technology fields and planning experiences. Therefore, specifically targeted regional co-operation activities could boost the exchange of experiences, information, data and expertise in coastal zone management; promote co-operative research programmes and technology transfer; and, scientific and technological means and capacity- building activities.

The establishment of a Regional Coastal Zone Management Centre was recommended in the SAARC Study on the Causes and Consequences of Natural Disasters and the Protection and Preservation of the Environment (SAARC, 1992). More recently, His Excellency Mr. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, President of the Maldives, highlighted the importance of the establishment of a SAARC Regional Coastal Zone Management Centre in his inaugural address to the SAARC Environment Ministers' Conference held in Male' from 15-16 October 1997. At the Conference, the SAARC Environment Ministers decided to conduct a feasibility study for such a centre, and welcomed the offer of the Government of Maldives to undertake the study.