Wednesday, November 29, 2006

The Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance Receives a Euro 1MM Grant for the Next Ten Years

The Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA) celebrated its fifth board meeting last week on St. Maarten in champagne style with the announcement that the Dutch Ministry of the Interior had approved a Euro 1 million per year grant for the coming ten years. The funding has been earmarked to cover the operational costs of DCNA and the nature parks of the Dutch Caribbean.

Commissioner Marlin of St. Maarten welcomed welcomed the delegates to the board meeting and congratulated them on their success and the extraordinary progress made by DCNA over the past two years. He announced that St. Maarten’s Marine Park Ordinance is currently under final review by the Island Council and finished with a word of thanks to the Nature Foundation for their hard work protecting nature on St. Maarten and encouragement to DCNA.

The news of the Dutch Government funding came after nearly a decade of lobbying on the part of the Central Government Department of Nature and the Environment (MINA) and DCNA’s partners at the Netherlands Committee of the World Conservation Union (IUCN NL). As long ago as 1998, it was recognized that funding was the single most pervasive threat to the future of the region’s protected areas and that the most enduring solution would be to create a Trust Fund large enough to cover the parks’ operational costs. By committing these funds, the Dutch Ministry has created the opportunity for the Parks to donate an equivalent amount of money to the DCNA Trust Fund and thereby to create a sustainable future for themselves.

The news was announced to applause in a packed room of board members and observers who were participating in a three-day DCNA Board meeting at the Holland Hotel on St. Maarten. With seven new board representatives and two newly elected executive committee members, DCNA feels it is ready to meet head on the challenges of supporting the protected areas and fundraising for a trust fund, which until last week was no more than a dream.

Executive Director, Kalli De Meyer, and prior manager of The Bonaire National Marine Park for many years, said that she was thrilled at the news but cautioned that this was just the first step toward a more sustainable future for the parks. “It may sound as though the Dutch Caribbean Parks will be swimming in money, but nothing could be further from the truth. In order to capitalize a trust fund large enough to cover the operational costs of one marine park and one land park on each of our islands we are going to have to tighten our belts and do an outstanding job of fundraising over the coming decade.”

Calculations show that Euro 24 million are needed to fully capitalize the trust fund and since the parks can make donations totalling Euro 750,000 per year, the Dutch Ministry’s commitment accounts for just under one third of the necessary capital.

DCNA’s Board Chairperson, Nicole Esteban, who manages the land and marine parks on the island of St. Eustatius, said “The real challenge lies with ensuring that the six national park organizations receive sufficient operational funding in the next ten years until the trust fund is capitalized and revenue generated for the parks. In the meantime, the same funding challenges remain.” (Source:  DCNA Press Release)