3A-GEF WIO Islnds Oil Spl Con SIL (FY99)

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The Western Indian Ocean Islands Oil Spill Contingency Planning Project aims to protect the environmental integrity of the coastal and marine ecosystems of the western Indian Ocean by helping the islands of Comoros, Mauritius, Madagascar, and Seychelles ratify and comply with international conventions and protocols that require states to develop and maintain adequate capacity to respond to oil pollution emergencies. The first of five components assists the four countries in upgrading their national legislative framework to accede to the relevant covenants and protocols by sponsoring a regional workshop on convention ratification and implementation; and providing expert consultants. The second component helps develop national contingency plans by improving environment data collection and management systems, identifying and establishing priorities, testing national contingency plans, and carrying out exercises. The third component evaluates local handling facilities, anticipates an accident scenario, appraises local and climatic conditions, creates a response strategy, identifies equipment, and provides training. The fourth component builds national capacity by designing and holding expert-led workshops and an expert-developed and tested response manual, providing training, and funding government participation in international seminars. The fifth component develops regional planning and agreements for cooperation, training, and coordination.