MOU for the cooperation in the implementation of the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion (SSME) Comprehensive Action Plan

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The Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion (SSME) is one of the few regions in the world that is rich in species.  It is part of the Coral Triangle region in the Pacific that spans a total of 640 million hectares between Indonesia, Malaysia, Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and the Solomon Islands. Nowhere else are there so many coral, crustacean and marine plant species. It is home to over 3,000 species of fish, twice as many as in any other region of the world. Even some critically endangered species such as the hawksbill sea turtle are able to find a habitat and the chance to reproduce there.

Many factors however, could reverse this trend.  The natural resources of the region is continuously exposed to considerable risk arising from severe overexploitation due to population growth , destructive fishing practices, rapid coastal development and other human activities.   As well, climate change and its impacts, such as the rise in water temperatures and sea level, ocean acidification and an increase in the intensity and frequency of storms confounds the situation.

Source:  https://www.giz.de/en/worldwide/18229.html