The TX2 Goal, initiated in 2010, aims to double the world’s tiger population by 2022. And 13 tiger range countries, including Nepal, have pledged to do so.

According to the country’s most recent tiger survey, there were an estimated 235 wild tigers in 2018, nearly twice the number of tigers in 2010. There were only about 120 of the endangered animals in 2010.

The survey was conducted by Nepal’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) in partnership with WWF-Nepal.

They tracked the animals in the protected areas and wildlife corridors in the Terai Arc Landscape using 4,387 camera trap images, line transects, and occupancy and prey density surveys.

Tiger Population By Location in Nepal

• Chitwan National Park – 93
• Bardiya – 87
• Banke National Park – 21
• Shuklaphanta National Park – 16
• Parsa – 18

[Also Read: Nepal National Parks – A True Harmony of Nature & The Wildlife]

On the occasion of International Tiger Day on July 29, Bishnu Prasad Shrestha, Information Officer at the DNPWC, said that Nepal has the proudest moment among the global countries.

He expressed that Nepal is on track to become the first tiger range country to fulfill its commitment to double the tiger population by 2022.

Meanwhile, Maheshwor Dhakal, Chief at the Climate Change Division under the Forest Ministry, said that Nepal has many challenges despite a positive path in tiger conservation.

He exclaimed that Nepal has to deal with challenges such as habitat maintenance, human-tiger conflict, trafficking, illegal trade, climate change, and coronavirus pandemic to have the same progress in the future.

“There should be grassroots level teamwork among national bodies for the conservation and protection of tigers,” said Dhakal.

Nepal is enjoying success at the time when many of the world’s tiger population are in decline due to habitat loss and widespread poaching.

“Nepal is a great example for other tiger range countries to step up and commit to the same level of political will and excellence. While this is a huge story for tiger conservation, it also highlights the constant need to ensure the protection of key habitats and the value of a landscape approach for this species to recover and thrive,” said Ginette Hemley, Senior Vice President of Wildlife Conservation at World Wildlife Fund.

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Under the British-led Nekton Mission, a group of scientists have begun their journey to explore the Indian Ocean on March 07, 2019.

The mission formally began at Alphonse Atoll, 232 miles in the southwest of Seychelles’ capital Victoria.

The expedition will do a deep research on the unexplored part of the planet i.e. the Indian Ocean, which has begun seeing the effects of global warming.

The research involves modest high-technology equipment, which includes a device that will study water’s chemistry and also Neuston net to retrieve zooplankton.

“It’s really important. Fish feed on zooplankton, so we need to see its quality, because if the ecosystems changes it may have an impact on the fish we feed on,” says Mission member and Seychelles-based marine researcher Stephanie Marie.

The mission intends to study unexplored areas of Indian Ocean waters, discover new species, make document evidence of climate change and human-driven pollution.

The mission is part of Seychelles ‘blue economy’ and attempts to balance development with safety of oceanic environment.

The deep-sea mission of up to 1000 feet covers underwater mountain ranges and undiscovered marine life.

The seven-week Seychelles expedition is expected to run until April 19, 2019 to trace the secrets of the Indian Ocean.

Find more such interesting world news updates in our ‘World News’ section!

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Around 200 countries and their Heads of the States are taking part in the #COP24 Summit, which is also seeing wide traction from various globally-renowned climate change experts, scientists, environmentalists, and many others from all sections of the society, globally.

What World Leaders Said at #COP24 Climate Change Conference ?

“Even as we witness devastating climate impacts causing havoc across the world, we are still not doing enough, nor moving fast enough, to prevent irreversible and catastrophic climate disruption” – Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary-General

“We feel as if we have been penalized for the mistakes we never made…. It is incumbent upon the international community to ensure that justice is done”– Bidya Devi Bhandari, President of Nepal

“The choice before us all has never been so stark. Act now with courage and resolve … Or, god forbid, ignore the irrefutable evidence, and become the generation that betrayed humanity and our responsibility to future generations” – Frank Bainimarama, Prime Minister of Fiji, Outgoing COP President

“Here in Katowice, we must recapture the spirit of Paris” – Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of The Netherlands

“Saving the arctic is needed to save the globe” – Sauli Väinämö Niinistö, President of Finland.

“Science has done its work, so we have to do ours” – Pedro Sánchez Perez-Castejón, President of Spain

“Our generation is the first to experience the rapid increase in temperature around the globe, and it will probably be the last generation to hold the key to beat the climate crisis” – Alexander Van der Bellen, President of Austria

“You’re wrong when you say that America dropped out of the Paris Agreement”arnold schwarzenegger, former governor of california – Arnold Schwarzenegger, Former Governor of California

“The fight against #climatechange is connected with the fight against gender inequality” – Nicola Ferguson Sturgeon, First Minister of Scotland

“The international community was able to successfully tackle the existential threat of ozone layer depletion. We can do the same thing with #greenhousegas emissions. We need reality checks and we need hope. The earth doesn’t need us; we need the earth.” – Mae Jemison, First African-American Woman in Space

“Everything’s at stake now. As 20 000 experts from 90 countries gather in #Katowice for the world’s biggest climate forum @COP24, it’s up to all of us to remember there is #NoPlanetB” – Alexander Gerst, Astronaut at European Space Agency

“Without zero emission transport, holding the increase in global average temperature to well below 2 degrees C and pursuing efforts to limit warming to 1.5 degrees C will simply be impossible. We need to act and we need to act now” – Michal Kurtyka, COP24 President

“If we don’t take #ClimateAction, the collapse of our civilisations and the extinction of much of the natural world is on the horizon” – Sir David Attenborough, Natural Historian

“This is going to be one of the most difficult negotiations we’ve seen yet. There are so many moving parts.” – Andrew Light, Sr. Climate Change Adviser at the State Department under President Barack Obama

#COP24 seeks serious action plans and future strategies from the world nations on how they would control the growing emissions to bring it to the level of 2 Degrees in line with the Paris Accord….See: #COP24 Agenda

More in the offing….

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Winners 20-year Indian Vikas Yadav and 20-year Mexican Andrea Sofia Roseles Vega  were shortlisted for the Green & Climate Friendly Jobs and Responsible Production & Consumption categories, respectively.

Yadav and Vega were chosen through online public vote and will be honored in a ceremony at the COP24 Hub on December 6, 2018. They will travel to Katowice for the UN Climate Change Conference (COP24) to be held in December 2018.

The young duo grabbed a rare chance of working with the UN Climate Change’s Global Climate Action Team in covering the conference highlights and report the proceedings to the global youth audience.

Vikas for ‘Go Green’
In his 3-minute video, Vikas takes viewers on a visit to rural India, where more than 70 percent of the population is engaged in agriculture. Since food is vulnerable to climate change, farmers share how innovative agricultural practices can play an important role in mitigating and adapting to climate change.

Through his video, Vikas urges people to ‘Go Green’ by shifting to more natural growing and management techniques.

“These two young people and their videos are encouraging examples of the global climate action needed to address climate change. “I congratulate Sofia and Vikas, and I applaud all the entrants showcasing international youth’s essential response to climate change,” said Patricia Espinosa Executive Secretary, UN Climate Change.

The 2018 Global Youth Video Competition on Climate Change received 300 entries from youth between 18-30 years in more than 100 countries from Ajerbaijan to Yemen.

• Watch the video by Vikas Yadav here.

Vega’s Eco Urban
Vega’s video describes the ‘Eco urban’ project and features how we can clean up urban areas while making a difference in people’s lives.

The project focuses on collecting and reusing waste including plastic and old clothes in a bid to clean up streets.

The video also showcases how people can raise funds by selling products made from recycled material. These funds are reinvested in collection centers while 60 percent is invested to fight childhood cancer.

Vega’s video ends with a powerful message, ‘the participants are ordinary people, making our world extraordinary!’

• Watch the video by Andrea Sofia Rosales Vega here.

UN Climate Change and Television for Environment jointly organized the competition.

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The country has also seen a long-awaited political transformation and is hoping a lot from the new government towards the recovery and reconstruction activities.

Since then, Nepal has been struggling a lot and is still on path of recovery across various areas of development through the earthquake recovery program.

As a process, the country received a wide range of support from the global community and has so far received an international aid of USD 4.1 billion under the program.

On April 25, 2018, the world observed the third anniversary of Nepal’s devastating 2015 earthquake which took away the lives of almost 9,000 people leaving a loss of USD 7 billion.

Third Anniversary

Marking the day, various programs were held across the country as a homage to the victims of the earthquake.

In Nepal, the day started with a prayer meeting at the ruins of famous Dharahara tower in Kathmandu. The event was attended by hundreds of people including the Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

Speaking at the event, President Bidya Devi Bhandari recalled the tragedy the earthquake has caused resulting in thousands of human casualties and damaging physical infrastructure.

Later in a tweet, she called on authorities for early completion of reconstruction works.

In this regard, let’s take a look at some of the major moves taken to support the victims of the 2015 earthquake in Nepal:

Government-level Support

The Government of Nepal had set up the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA) to support those who witnessed huge losses in the 2015 earthquake.

The power decentralization and strengthening of local bodies across the country, as proposed by the 2015 federal constitution and taken ahead by the recently-concluded elections, is expected to take the relief measures and recovery support process to the next level driven by the active participation of provincial governments.

This was evident in wider application of the earthquake recovery policy, which took a different turn after the August 2017 floods, wherein, the government adopted earthquake-related policies to the flood victims as well and also passed the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act, 2017.

Further in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority was also formed taking ahead the need for effective disaster management among the country’s populace.

The government had initially called for completion of the reconstruction activity by July 2018 and has also revised deadlines asking the victims to ensure completion of homes up to the plinth level by mid-July 2018 and the roof-line by mid-January 2019, says Dr Bhisma Bhusal, a NRA spokesperson.

Meanwhile, the owner-driven housing reconstruction program has also been started in consultation with the World Bank, the program’s largest lender.

Global-level Support

Supporting the government’s move, UNDP has also recently stepped up for its assistance on various aspects of the recovery program. It has pledged an all-round support to the victims of the worst-hit Gorkha district.

UNDP joined with the Government of India in March 2018 to assist around 27,000 home-owners to rebuild their houses damaged in the earthquake.

Upon a full-fledged implementation, this program will be the largest-ever post-disaster recovery program initiated by UNDP so far.

UNDP’s support involves on-site technical support with regard to government policies, quake-resilient features, construction technology, training of related skilled and unskilled personnel, process management, among others.

In the process, UNDP has also partnered with a large number of NGOs who assisted the organization in developing the Owner-driven Reconstruction Collaborative (ODRC).

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) has also pledged its housing recovery support to the victims of Nuwakot District.

This program that involves technical and financial support by the Government of India is being seen as a move that reflects the South-South cooperation.

Besides, there is also a trend of more number of people sending their family members to go abroad and support them locally in reconstruction activity. Surprisingly, this activity has boosted up remittance revenues to Nepal.

The Asian Foundation reports a rise in dependence of quake-hit victims on remittance revenues to Nepal from 9 percent in 2015 to 15 percent in 2017 driven by the increasing number of migrants from quake-hit areas.

Existing Concerns

Despite the huge support, the support for quake-hit survivors is still a long way to go, says the globally-renowned Human Rights Watch (HRW).

Citing official reports, it says only 16 percent of the total international aid is used as part of recovery support.

After waiting a lot for the support, the communities themselves started rebuilding schools and homes.

According to the reports, the government has spent USD 1.1 billion out of the estimated USD 8 billion fund meant for recovery activity.

Meanwhile, a 2017 study by the Asia Foundation cites lack of financial resources among the house owners as a key reason behind the delay in completion of reconstruction activity.

According to the Housing Recovery and Reconstruction Platform (HRRP), the median cost associated with house reconstruction stands at USD 6,750, which is quite higher than the government grant.

The building construction costs in Nepal have increased with the occurrence of earthquake and have gone to next level post the announcement of reconstruction deadlines, thus resulting in increased labor and material costs.

Overall, financing reconstruction has been a major challenge for many victims hindering the progress of earthquake reconstruction activity, and an unfortunate trend of people rebuilding one-room houses to get the best out of government subsidies is also observed across the country.

On an End Note

Nepal is one country that is fast developing by making major strides alongside balancing key infrastructure challenges resulting out of climate change and other environmental challenges. Hope, new policies and the decentralized government functioning will address the public concerns associated with natural disasters at grassroot levels in a timely manner and through efficient disaster management systems.

The post Nepal 2015 Earthquake: Three Years of a Sad Story! appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

Through the conference, the organizers focus on bringing up discussions on formulation of climate-resilient policies with due consideration of scientific knowledge and best practices for effective water resource and environmental management.

The conference is expected to witness a participation of around 500-1000 participants and is also hosting 10-50 exhibitors.

Event Date and Time:
Date: April 10-12, 2018.; Time: 09:00 AM-06:00 PM

Location:
Hotel Yak and Yeti in Kathmandu, Nepal

Contact Info:
Nepal Engineers’ Association
Patan 44600, Nepal
Landline: +977-1-5010253, Mobile: +977-1-5010251, 5010252
Contact Website: info@neanepal.org.np

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The three-day summit, to be held during November 14-16, 2017, is expected to witness a participation of more than 200 delegates, including Members of Parliament, ministers, senior government officials, planners and leading think-tanks and researchers from South Asian countries.

The main theme of the SAES 2017 is to strengthen economic stability in the sub-region for the inclusive and sustainable development, informed a press release by the National Planning Commission (NPC) Nepal.

NPC Nepal and the Ministry of Commerce, Government of Nepal are jointly organizing the summit in collaboration with the South Asia Watch on Trade, Economics and Environment (SAWTEE).

SAES 2017 will have 18 different sessions that would discuss wide range of topics including employment generation, trade facilitation, climate change, international labor migration, regional trade and tie-ups in power trade, measures for disaster management and Intellectual Property (IP) issues related to herbs, among others.

This regional economic platform has been successfully addressing various key issues and developmental challenges of South Asia and has emerged as an effective medium for regional integration and economic collaboration, says the Vice Chairman of National Planning Commission Swornim Wagley.

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This 23^rd global session of COP to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) is bringing together policy makers, scientists, lobbyists and private sector experts from across the world to discuss on global climate change.

The Nepali delegation led by the Nepali Minister for Population and Environment Mithila Chaudhary will be representing the country at the COP23, wherein, they will present Nepal’s detailed status paper on climate change.

“We have prepared the status report including our experience with climate change over the years and what we expect from the international community. The status paper was necessary also for making our participation in the conference effective,” informed Bishwa Nath Oli, Secretary at the Nepali Environment Ministry.

Paris Agreement and Other Key Issues on Agenda

Through its paper, Nepal urges COP23 over implementation of key agreements made under Paris Agreement on Climate Change in April 2017.

Besides stressing on timely implementation of rule book guiding Paris Accord, Nepal also seeks the international community for needed financial and technical support that it deserves as a Least Developed Country (LDC).

Citing damages it has witnessed because of recent floods, among other natural calamities, Nepal also seeks funding support from the global community while also urging COP23 to raise relevant funding and related support for calamity-vulnerable countries.

Paris Accord, adaptation, mitigation measures, means of implementation and cross-cutting agendas like climate and gender are the key issues Nepal has planned to raise at the conference through its status paper.

Through its paper, Nepal seeks developed countries’ contribution of USD 100 billion per year by 2020 as agreed upon during the Paris COP21 session.

“The Paris Committee on Capacity-building has been established to support countries like Nepal. However, not much progress has been made under this heading. The support mechanism for LDCs must be expedited,” reads a statement in Nepal’s paper to be presented at COP23.

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With this, Nepal is set to become the second country in the world, after India, to introduce such policy to promote forestry that boosts the agriculture sector.

“Agroforestry should be promoted in Nepal because of our larger forest coverage, which is greater than neighboring India, and in recent times untilled land is increasing in the country. We should utilize the barren land through agroforestry,” said Yubak Dhoj GC, Secretary at the Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation at a policy dialogue program in Kathmandu on November 04, 2017.

Adopting agroforestry is very feasible in Nepal owing to the country’s 45 percent forest coverage of the total area, he added.

A Step Ahead from Declaration Made in 2015

While India adopted its National Agroforestry Policy in 2014, Nepal started its background activity to support such policy three years ago. In 2015, the then Government of Nepal had also endorsed the ‘Kathmandu Declaration on Agroforestry.

The declaration called for a more structured approach among country’s various stakeholders on ways to promote agroforestry through the National Agroforestry Policy.

According to the declaration, the proposed policy would give needed boost for the development of fodder and feed, food and nutrition and energy, while also capping land degradation and encouraging new agroforestry models for various agro-ecological zones.

Science-based Intervention, Need of the Hour

According to Dr Javed Rizvi, Regional Director, South Asia program for World Agroforestry Center (WAC), agroforestry is not a new concept to Nepali farmers.

“Farmers have been cultivating trees on farmland for a long time, which is now called agroforestry. This is not a new concept for Nepal. Local knowledge and science-based intervention are needed for sustainable development of forests in Nepal,” says Rizvi.

Legal Constraints

Meanwhile, Nepali stakeholders are worried that the existing legal constraints might pose challenge to agroforestry practices in the country.

According to them, there are 32 national policies that talk about agroforestry, but lack clarity on the same.

“Besides clearly drawing the roles and responsibilities of different agencies, the new policy should declare an agroforestry super zone for the areas where the forest coverage is poor,” says Joshi. Murari Raj Joshi, a Consultant for IMCC for designing the policy.

“There are already many provisions that contradict each other and restrict hassle-free trade of timber and forest products. Without legal flexibility, agroforestry cannot thrive here,” says Bishnu Hari Pandit, Chairperson, Kathmandu Forestry College.

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Kathmandu-based Yeti Airlines is working with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as part of its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) promotion programme under 2030 Agenda.

The partnership focuses on promotion of SDG-branding icons, creating awareness campaigns, concrete plans for the achievement of SDGs.

These aircraft will take the action plans related to SDGs and all the related messages to all parts of the country where aircraft provide a vital transport and connectivity.

According to UN, this partnership between UNDP and Yeti Airlines, in addition to the SDG-branded aircraft, includes the ‘Goals’ features on boarding passes and airport shuttle buses, information leaflets on sustainable development and social media campaigns along with a link on the airline’s website for donating to UNDP programmes in country.

“This is a powerful example to show the world that in partnership with the private sector, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development can really take off,” said Renaud Meyer, the UNDP Country Director for Nepal announcing the new aircraft livery.

He further lauded the initiative saying, ““We are very pleased to see these airplanes flying in Nepali skies, spreading messages on how we can tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges.”

More Such Campaigns in Pipeline

Apart from that, the partnership also intends to involve stakeholders and advocates in implementation process, create innovative and sustainable business models in the aviation and tourism industries, among others to help Nepal meet key SDG indicators related to climate change, gender equality and poverty reduction.

SDGs, adopted by UN Member States in 2015, allow partnerships with the private sector in mobilizing resources, technology and innovation to take forward the implementation of the SDG agenda.

“In Nepal, we have been exploring ways in which UN could help the local businesses grow more responsible and SDG-friendly,” said Mr. Meyer and also informed that more such joint initiatives will be implemented to help the country meet its 2030 agenda.

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