The Republic of Yemen became the 28th Signatory State to the IOSEA Marine Turtle Memorandum of Understanding with the signature, on 20 August 2008, of Mr. Abdullah Hamoud Abo Al-Fotooh, Director General of Natural Resources and Research, Environmental Protection Authority.

Mr. Al-Fotooh signed the instrument in the presence of IOSEA Coordinator, Douglas Hykle, after the opening ceremony of the Fifth Meeting of IOSEA Signatory States, held in Bali, Indonesia. The event was witnessed by an audience of more than 100 conference participants from 30 countries.  More »

The Fifth Meeting of the Signatory States got under way in Bali, Indonesia, following months of preparation by the Host Government, IOSEA Secretariat, and other cooperating partners.

The conference follows a two day-session of the IOSEA Advisory Committee, an informal meeting of the sister CMS Memorandum of Understanding on Dugongs, and a related workshop on by-catch reduction techniques organized by WWF-Indonesia and Udayana University.

The Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, in partnership with WWF-Indonesia and a team of volunteers from Udayana University in Denpasar have been working hard on the local logistical arrangements, while the IOSEA Secretariat has been busy in Bangkok taking care of the substantive documentation for the meeting. More »