World Environment Day marked in Sudan

World Environment Day 2021 was marked in Sudan on Saturday with a celebration in organised by the by the Ministry of Culture and Information in cooperation with the Sudanese Society for Afforestation. the Ambassadors of Sweden, Netherlands, Spain and the EU, representatives of organisations, and the residents of Tuti Island in Khartoum teamed up and participated in cleaning waste and litter from the beach and the market street.

World Environment Day 2021 marks the launch of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration which aims to reverse the damage we have caused to nature.

At the function at the ministry on Saturday, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Culture and Information, El Rasheed Saeed Yagoub, affirmed that the biggest service that is to be provided to the environment is to stop wars, and their effects of displacement and other environmental destructors, to maintain the balance of the ecosystem.

The Undersecretary praised introduction of the environmental component as an important factor in the establishment of any economic project, stressing the importance of international cooperation to solve environmental problems, “as 90 per cent of them are international”.

On the occasion of World Environment Day, the Ambassadors of Sweden, Netherlands, Spain and the EU, representatives of organisations and the residents of Tuti Island* teamed up and participated in cleaning waste and litter from the beach and the market street.

A release posted by the European Union on Facebook highlights that the EU supports the local and youth initiatives presented through local and international organisations, explaining that this initiative comes within the framework of waste management projects.

In his speech, Chargé d’Affaires of the European Union, Daniel Weiss, said that the problem of waste is a real threat to the environment in Sudan and many countries around the world.

He called on Sudanese youth to invent new and local solutions and build community teams to protect the environment in neighbourhoods and villages in Sudan, increasing awareness of the problem and harms of garbage and encouraging people to produce less garbage and reduce the rates of littering as well as opening the door for investment in the waste management and recycling to produce new and environmentally friendly goods.

As reported by Radio Dabanga last week, it was announced on the eve of World Environment Day that key national parks in Sudan are to receive increased protection and support for improved management, local communities, and ecotourism. The $23.6 million initiative is to be finance by the Global Environmental Facility and the remainder from UN and national contributions, and partners.

The five-year project will see more than 20,000 square kilometres of land and marine areas supported – across Dinder National Park, Jebel El Dair National Park, and the Red Sea-based Dungonab Bay – Mukkawar Island Marine National Park.

* Tuti Island is an island at the confluence of the White Nile and Blue Nile that merge to form the main Nile. It is surrounded by Khartoum, Omdurman, and Khartoum North (Bahri).