The three-day event, which pooled officials of the European Union, the United Nations and about 50 countries-signatories to the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy, was opened by Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader. He thanked the Council of Europe secretariat and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) for choosing Croatia to host this conference which is a part of preparations for the eighth meeting of parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity that will take place in Brasil in March.
PM Sanader said that with regard to environment protection his country was following the European model and had laid foundations for harmonising the interests of the economy and ecology.
In a bid to harmonise those interests, Croatia expects assistance and cooperation from all relevant sectors and the public, including nongovernmental organisations and business entities which are and must be equal partners in the process, as well as efforts aimed at preserving the entire biological and landscape diversity, he added.
The Convention on Biological Diversity, signed by 150 government leaders at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, is dedicated to promoting sustainable development. The Convention recognizes that biological diversity is about more than plants, animals and micro organisms and their ecosystems - it is about people and their need for food safety, medicines, fresh air and water, shelter, and a clean and healthy environment in which to live, the UNEP said on its web site.
The Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy presents an innovative and proactive approach to stop and reverse the degradation of biological and landscape diversity values in Europe. The Strategy also provides a framework for promoting a consistent approach and common objectives for national and regional action to implement the Convention on Biological Diversity.