Coral reefs are particularly important to millions of people around the world as sources of high quality protein, medicinal, and cultural products. They also provide raw materials for dwellings along the coast, and protect fragile shorelines from storm damage and erosion. Many economies are also dependent on reefs and their products. The coral reefs, and the white sand beaches they produce, are worth hundreds of million of dollars in tourism to some tropical countries, and are the mainstay of many small island developing states. Lobster, conch, snapper, and grouper are increasingly in demand by thriving tourist industries as well as the international seafood market.

Coral reefs are also of great value to the world at large as they are the hotspots of marine biodiversity. For example, a small coral reef in Indonesia may support over 300 species of corals, 700 species of fish, and many thousands of other animals and plants.

But in the early 1990s, alarm calls were sounded from all quarters — the reefs of the world were in serious trouble, with large-scale degradation occurring in East Africa, South and Southeast Asia, parts of the Pacific, and across the Caribbean. These calls were made up of a series of individual reports of reefs being damaged by human activities, or often by a combination of human and natural stress, but there were no clear assessments documenting the status of reefs around the world. Thus came a response by governments, donor agencies, and the scientific community to set up global monitoring programs that could help decision makers and the public evaluate the health of the world’s reefs.

In 1994, the government of the USA stimulated the formation of the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI), and a subsequent Framework for Action, which included the establishment of a Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN), which has produced this book. About this time, the International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management in Manila (ICLARM), a member of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research, set up a global database — ReefBase. Subsequent monitoring efforts include Reef Check, a rapid assessment technique which developed out of Hong Kong, and AGRA, a regional initiative for the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. It is very pleasing to note that these programs are not simply research oriented, but are designed to provide resource managers with the type of information they need to make wise decisions for reef conservation.

The World Bank also recognised the importance of coral reefs to its clients, as a global public good under increasing threat from unsustainable development. The Bank, in partnership with the Global Environment Facility and others, is currently supporting the preparation and implementation of a growing portfolio of coral reef conservation and management projects around the world. These include national projects in Indonesia, Madagascar, Mauritius, the Seychelles, Egypt, India, and Mozambique, and regional initiatives in Mesoamerica and the Red Sea. The World Bank has also been a strong supporter of the International Coral Reef Initiative since its inception, and is now pleased to be a co-sponsor of the GCRMN.

I welcome this summary report on the status of the world’s reefs, and urge you to join in supporting efforts such as these to understand not only the physical dimensions of coral reef integrity and health, but the social and economic aspects of how we affect and are affected by the health of these vital marine ecosystems. As we know, the threats to coral reefs from all quarters are increasing. The following report summarizes the unprecedented massive coral bleaching event that occurred during the El Niño-La Niña ocean current oscillations of 1997–1998. From the information provided by this and other monitoring efforts, we can begin to develop a critical baseline against which to monitor trends and evaluate our attempts to introduce better management of reef resources. Only in this way can we hope to reverse the degradation that threatens the very existence of coral reefs and preserve for future generations the contemplation of these natural wonder.

Ismail Serageldin 19 October, 1998
Vice-President, Special Programs
The World Bank