Importancia del enfoque ecosistémico en las pesquerías de Georgia

The economic downturn in the 1990s and early 2000s associated with the break-up of the Soviet Union had a negative impact on Georgian fisheries. Both marine and freshwater fisheries and aquaculture suffered considerable decline. The Georgian fishing fleet deteriorated. The role of state institutions in fisheries management weakened and funding of scientific research diminished. Economic and institutional problems had a negative effect on the state of aquatic bio-resources. The excessive and relentless use of living resources, use of illegal fishing gear and degradation of coastal ecosystems led to a considerable reduction in fish stocks, while the number of vulnerable and endangered species increased. Starting from the new millennium the attitude has changed. In 2004-2005 the 15-year plan for the development of the ecosystem approach to fisheries in Georgia was initiated with support from the FAO. A Georgian law on fisheries and aquaculture has been introduced. Discussions on responsible fisheries and an aquaculture code have also started, but are still pending. On the other hand, the fisheries department of the Ministry of Agriculture was abolished and the single fisheries research institute met a similar fate. Fisheries regulation came under the authority of the ministry of environment. There is still a lot to be done in order to establish an ecosystem approach to fisheries in Georgia. First of all, the legislative base must be addressed, including the Georgian law on fisheries, which would consider such issues as long-term sustainable development of fisheries, a responsible code of conduct for fishermen, monitoring and management structures at the national level, allocation of resources and application of scientific approaches in development of fisheries, aquaculture and mariculture.La crisis económica del la década de 1990 y principios de 2000 asociada a la caída de la Unión Soviética tuvo un impacto negativo sobre las pesquerías de Georgia. Tanto la pesca de agua dulce como la acuicultura marina sufrieron un importante descenso. La flota pesquera de Georgia se deterioró. Se debilitó el papel de las instituciones estatales en las pesquerías y la financiación de la investigación científica disminuyó considerablemente. Los problemas económicos e institucionales tuvieron un efecto negativo en el estado de los recursos biológicos acuáticos. El uso excesivo de los recursos vivos, el uso de artes de pesca ilegal y la degradación de los ecosistemas costeros, provocó una considerable reducción de las poblaciones de peces, al tiempo que aumentó el número de especies vulnerables y en peligro de extinción. A partir del nuevo milenio la actitud ha cambiado. En el período 2004-2005, con el apoyo de la FAO, se inició el plan de 15 años de duración para el desarrollo del enfoque ecosistémico de la pesca en Georgia. Se introdujo una nueva ley sobre pesca y acuicultura. Sin embargo, las deliberaciones sobre el Código de Conducta para la pesca responsable siguen todavía pendientes. Por otro lado, se eliminó el departamento de pesca del Ministerio de Agricultura y algo similar le ocurrió al instituto de investigación de pesquerías. La regulación de la pesca pasó a manos del Ministerio de Medio Ambiente. Todavía hay mucho por hacer a fin de establecer un enfóque ecosistémico de la pesca en Georgia. En primer lugar, debe aplicarse una base legislativa, e incluir la ley de pesquerías de Georgia en ella. Debe considerar cuestiones, tales como el desarrollo sostenible a largo plazo de las pesquerías, el Código de Conducta para la Pesca Responsable para los pescadores, vigilancia y estructuras de gestión a nivel nacional, asignación de recursos y aplicación de criterios científicos en el desarrollo de la pesca, acuicultura

European Red List of Habitats Part 1. Marine habitats

The European Red List of Habitats provides an overview of the risk of collapse (degree of endangerment) of marine, terrestrial and freshwater habitats in the European Union (EU28) and adjacent regions (EU28+), based on a consistent set of categories and criteria, and detailed data and expert knowledge from involved countries1. A total of 257 benthic marine habitat types were assessed. In total, 19% (EU28) and 18% (EU28+) of the evaluated habitats were assessed as threatened in categories Critically Endangered, Endangered and Vulnerable. An additional 12% were Near Threatened in the EU28 and 11% in the EU28+. These figures are approximately doubled if Data Deficient habitats are excluded. The percentage of threatened habitat types differs across the regional seas. The highest proportion of threatened habitats in the EU28 was found in the Mediterranean Sea (32%), followed by the North-East Atlantic (23%), the Black Sea (13%) and then the Baltic Sea (8%). There was a similar pattern in the EU28+. The most frequently cited pressures and threats were similar across the four regional seas: pollution (eutrophication), biological resource use other than agriculture or forestry (mainly fishing but also aquaculture), natural system modifications (e.g. dredging and sea defence works), urbanisation and climate change. Even for habitats where the assessment outcome was Data Deficient, the Red List assessment process has resulted in the compilation of a substantial body of useful information to support the conservation of marine habitats

SYSTEM COMPLEXITY INDEX

A new technique for the objective assessment of the engineering system complexity is offered. The complexity class concept is introduced

ON UNIVERSITY CORPORATE CULTURE DEVELOPMENT WITHIN THE FRAME OF QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

The problem on the corporate culture development needed to achieve the strategic and social goals in the higher educational institution is considered. The corporate culture development within the frame of the quality management system (QMS) building is one of the optimal solution approaches to the problem. The key element of the effective university operation is the capability to meet instantly the customer requirements. For that, it is necessary to develop Policy, Mission, and Goals in QMS, as well as principles, values, and traditions which are part and parcel of the corporate culture. Both internal and external strategic development plans, and the basic functions of the educational community corporate culture are analyzed. The value system and the construction principles of the corporate culture are considered

Total and organic mercury in the Black Sea harbour porpoise <i>Phocoena phocoena relicta</i>

This paper reports on mercury (Hg) concentrations in different tissues (liver, muscle, kidney, blubber and brain) of harbour porpoises Phocoena phocoena found dead in the Black Sea between 1997 and 1999, mainly bycaught in fishing nets (n = 79). Total Hg and organic Hg (MeHg) were determined. The main factor affecting Hg accumulation was, as expected, age, with MeHg concentration increasing with age. Accumulation of high concentrations of inorganic Hg in the liver was probably due to a slow demethylation process implying the formation of tiemannite (HgSe). In older adults, liver concentrations reached 35 µg g-1 dry weight ('ppm') total Hg and 3 µg g-1 dw MeHg. A geographical comparison with existing data from other regions showed a generally low Hg contamination of Black Sea porpoises, one order of magnitude lower than, e.g. in the North Sea

Cost-effectiveness of pneumococcal conjugate vaccination in Georgia.

OBJECTIVE: Financial support from the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) to introduce the 10-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV10) into the routine childhood immunization schedule in Georgia is ending in 2015. As a result, the Interagency Coordination Committee (ICC) decided to carry out a cost-effectiveness analysis to gather additional evidence to advocate for an appropriate evidence-based decision after GAVI support is over. The study also aimed to strengthen national capacity to conduct cost-effectiveness studies, and to introduce economic evaluations into Georgia's decision-making process. METHODOLOGY: A multidisciplinary team of national experts led by a member of the ICC carried out the analysis that compared two scenarios: introducing PCV10 vs no vaccination. The TRIVAC model was used to evaluate 10 cohorts of children over the period 2014-2023. National data was used to inform demographics, disease burden, vaccine coverage, health service utilization, and costs. Evidence from clinical trials and the scientific literature was used to estimate the impact of the vaccine. A 3+0 schedule and a vaccine price increasing to US$3.50 per dose was assumed for the base-case scenario. Alternative univariate and multivariate scenarios were evaluated. RESULTS: Over the 10-year period, PCV10 was estimated to prevent 7170 (8288 undiscounted) outpatient visits due to all-cause acute otitis media, 5325 (6154 undiscounted) admissions due to all-cause pneumonia, 87 (100 undiscounted) admissions due to pneumococcal meningitis, and 508 (588 undiscounted) admissions due to pneumococcal non-pneumonia and non-meningitis (NPNM). In addition, the vaccine was estimated to prevent 41 (48 undiscounted) deaths. This is equivalent to approximately 5 deaths and 700 admissions prevented each year in Georgia. Over the 10-year period, PCV10 would cost the government approximately US$ 4.4 million ($440,000 per year). However, about half of this would be offset by the treatment costs prevented. The discounted cost-effectiveness ratio was estimated to be US$ 1599 per DALY averted with scenarios ranging from US$286 to US$ 7787. DISCUSSION: This study led to better multi-sectoral collaboration and improved national capacity to perform economic evaluations. Routine infant vaccination against Streptococcus pneumoniae would be highly cost-effective in Georgia. The decision to introduce PCV10 was already made some time before the study was initiated but it provided important economic evidence in support of that decision. There are several uncertainties around many of the parameters used, but a multivariate scenario analysis with several conservative assumptions (including no herd effect in older individuals) shows that this recommendation is robust. This study supports the decision to introduce PCV10 in Georgia

Evidence-based decision-making for vaccine introductions: Overview of the ProVac International Working Group's experience.

INTRODUCTION: Pan American Health Organization's (PAHO) ProVac Initiative aims to strengthen countries' technical capacity to make evidence-based immunization policy. With financial support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, PAHO established the ProVac International Working Group (IWG), a platform created for two years to transfer the ProVac Initiative's tools and methods to support decisions in non-PAHO regions. METHODS: In 2011, WHO Regional Offices and partner agencies established the IWG to transfer the ProVac framework for new vaccine decision support, including tools and trainings to other regions of the world. During the two year period, PAHO served as the coordinating secretariat and partner agencies played implementing or advisory roles. RESULTS: Fifty nine national professionals from 17 countries received training on the use of economic evaluations to aid vaccine policy making through regional workshops. The IWG provided direct technical support to nine countries to develop cost-effectiveness analyses to inform decisions. All nine countries introduced the new vaccine evaluated or their NITAGs have made a recommendation to the Ministry of Health to introduce the new vaccine. DISCUSSION: Developing countries around the world are increasingly interested in weighing the potential health impact due to new vaccine introduction against the investments required. During the two years, the ProVac approach proved valuable and timely to aid the national decision making processes, even despite the different challenges and idiosyncrasies encountered in each region. The results of this work suggest that: (1) there is great need and demand for technical support and for capacity building around economic evaluations; and (2) the ProVac method of supporting country-owned analyses is as effective in other regions as it has been in the PAHO region. CONCLUSION: Decision support for new vaccine introduction in low- and middle-income countries is critical to guiding the efficient use of resources and prioritizing high impact vaccination programs