Isaura Daniel*
São Paulo – Arab nations in Africa are concerned with the advance of desert areas. The minister of Environment and Physical Development of Sudan, Ahmed Babikir Ahmed Nahar, delivered to representatives of the United Nations (UN) a letter asking for international help to fight the growth of desertification in his country. The letter was delivered at the 8th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP-8), which began last week and ends today (31) in Curitiba, capital of the southern Brazilian state of Paraná. The meeting is organized by the UN.
According to the minister, the Sudanese desert is advancing into tropical and savannah areas. The country is made up of these two kinds of biomasses and also of desert and semi-desert areas. "The desert is advancing into areas where there are forests," he says. The tropical zone has high trees and the savannah lower vegetation. The consequences are already appearing, according to Nahar, with the migration of animals like elephants, lions and giraffes to other countries.
One of the measures that may control the advance of the desert is preservation of its fauna and flora. This is also a concern in Tunisia, whose head of cabinet at the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, Habib Dimassi, also participated in the conference about biological diversity in Curitiba. "In the desert there are plants, living animals, even water. And this must be preserved so that the system may remain complete and not advance to other areas," stated Dimassi.
According to him, in the African desert there are bushes and birds that are threatened with extinction, as is the case with the great bustard. At Rio 92, the UN conference about the environment and development, which took place in the city of Rio de Janeiro (SE Brazil) in 1992, the agreements made included the fight against desertification, according to the representative of the Tunisian government.
Tunisia
Tunisia is going to host, between June 19 and 21 of this year, an international conference turned to debates about arid regions. The meeting is promoted by the Unesco, the UN education, science and culture branch. Dimassi made use of the meeting in Curitiba to once again invite other countries to participate in the conference.
According to the Tunisian, preservation of biologic biodiversity is among the priorities of the current government of the Arab country. "Tunisia has adopted a national strategy to protect the environment and biological diversity," stated Dimassi. The country is sensitising the population to the importance of the environment, especially regarding preservation of the biological variety in arid regions.
One of the natural resources with which the Arab country already has prominent work is water. Tunisia, according to Dimassi, has adopted measures for rationalization of the use of water, including the reuse. "Used water is treated and reused in irrigation, for example," he says. Thirty percent of the water in the country is reused, according to the head of cabinet. Tunisia has over 80 water treatment stations. "Our experience is recognized worldwide," stated Dimassi.
The management of water resources and also the semiarid were the main themes discussed in the area of science and technology during the Summit of South American – Arab Countries, which took place in Brazilian capital Brasília in May last year. Even before the Summit there was a seminar about both matters in the city of Fortaleza, capital of the northeastern Brazilian state of Ceará.
Arab Brazilian Chamber
Apart from participating in the conference in the state of Paraná, Dimassi and Nahar visited the offices of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce yesterday (30), in São Paulo, southeastern Brazil. They were met by the organizations president, Antonio Sarkis Jr., by the Marketing vice president, Rubens Hannun, who is also the honorary consul of Tunisia in São Paulo, and by the secretary general, Michel Alaby.
The Sudanese minister presented to the board members at the Arab Brazilian Chamber his interest in increasing trade relations with Brazil. He asked for help to identify the sectors in which there may be opportunities for business and exchange between both countries, as Sudan is interested in diversifying trade partners.
With Dimassi, the heads of the Arab Brazilian Chamber discussed a possible return of representatives of the Tunisian ministry to Brazil to learn about the environmental work of Brazilian organizations.
*Translated by Mark Ament
