Global Declaration for Protection of River Dolphins

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Eleven Asian and South American countries have signed a Global Declaration for Protection of River Dolphins.

Key Highlights:

• It was signed by 11 countries (Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Colombia, Ecuador, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Peru, and Venezuela).
• Its aim is to halt the decline of all river dolphin species by 2030.
• Measures to be taken: Improve water quality in the dolphins’ habitat, create protected areas, tackle overfishing and involve Indigenous communities in the affected regions in protecting the animals.
• River dolphins are a group of fully aquatic mammals that reside exclusively in freshwater or brackish water.
• The six surviving river dolphins species are: Amazon, Indus, Ganges, Irrawaddy, Tucuxi and Yangtze finless porpoise. A seventh species, the Chinese river dolphin or baiji, was declared extinct in 2007.
• Since the 1980s, river dolphin populations have declined by 73% due to several threats like unsustainable fishing practices, hydropower dams, pollution from agriculture, industry and mining, and habitat loss.