The eight member states of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (OTCA) – Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Surinam, and Venezuela – intend to use the technology developed by the Amazon Protection System (SIPAM) as the basis for integrating their national forest monitoring programs.
"We are talking about the technical support that the Brazilian system can provide, as well as complementarity with the other countries’ information systems," the secretary-general of the OTCA, Rosalia Arteaga Serrano, told reporters.
The first phase of the agreement, which will be conducted by means of bilateral work plans between Brazil and the other countries, will involve technology transfer.
"Brazil’s technical capacity is greater than that of the other countries. We require technical cooperation to unify the language used by the different institutions," Serrano explained.
In her view, the exchange of technology and information will be vital in fulfilling the OTCA’s and the SIPAM’s common institutional mission, that is, the integrated management of the Amazon’s natural resources.
Since nature disregards political borders – water is a classic example – the countries must share data and work together to plan their environmental policy for the region.
"This will help in forest supervision, especially to detect illegal activities, such as burnings, trafficking in biodiversity, and illegal removal of valuable wood," the secretary-general pointed out.
The OTCA, which was created in 1995, comprises the eight countries that, in 1978, signed an agreement to promote mutual actions on behalf of the sustainable development of the Amazon Basin.
Agência Brasil