WITH a view to conserving the diversehabitats of the world, the World WideFund for Nature (WWF) launcheda campaign in 100 countries on April 5.The Global 200 campaign aims atpreserving 232 places thought to berepresentative of the remaining ecosystems in the world by the year 2000.Among the prominent Global 200 sitesare the tropical forests on the coast ofCameroon, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea,Congo and Nigeria; east African marineecosystems of Tanzania, Kenya andMozambique; the ecoregion of Mediterranean Sea in southern Europe,northern African and western Asia; andthe ancient and remote rainforests ofSumatra, Borneo, Malaysia and Brunei.
As part of the campaign, Mongoliahas promised to preserve at least 30 percent of its area which includes vast forestsand high-altitude grasslands which arehome to rare snow leopards. Panama hasdecided not to construct the Pan-American highway through a rare rainforest which shelters more bird species than any other spot on the Earth.