Ramsar’s International Organization Partners (IOPs):

How the IOPs support the Convention at global, regional and national level: the case of WWF

5 Ramsar IOPs (so far!)• Birdlife International

• International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

• International Water Management Institute (IWMI)

• Wetlands International

• WWF

• (but potential for more – eg. CI, TNC, etc.)

Global level

• IOPs support the general objectives and implementation of Ramsar Convention 3 pillars

• each IOP has a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Ramsar Secretariat (6 years validity, currently under renewal process)

• a key IOP criteria is to have a presence/wetland conservation activities in all 5 Ramsar Regions

• IOPs have an Observer status at Ramsar COPs, and Standing Committee meetings

Regional level• IOPs are actively involved in selected Ramsar Regional Initiatives, together with Ramsar Secretariat, Governments, Scientific/academic institutions, etc.

• IOPs have an Observers at Regional Pre-COP meetings

• IOPs often act as facilitators between Governments, Donors eg. GAAs or Multilateral, Foundations, Corporate Sector, etc.

• IOPs may, upon request from the Ramsar Secretariat, intervene on its behalf at specific meetings where/when Ramsar Secretariat can’t be directly represented (eg. International River Basin Organizations)

CICOS – Commission Internationale Congo-Oubangui-Sangha

• Official designation by DRC of the world’s largest Ramsar Site (Kinshasa, July 2008): Ngiri-Tumba-Maindombé

• Speech made by WWF International on behalf of the Ramsar Secretariat

National level• Support implementation of Ramsar’s 3 pillars:

• Management of Wetlands (incl. support to management plans preparation and/or implementation, preparation of National Wetlands Policies, National Wetland Inventories, etc.)• Designation of Wetlands on the Ramsar List• Technical and Policy advise to Governments in framework of Regional Ramsar Initiatives

• Contribute to the “awareness continuity” at national level (eg. in case of changes of Ministers, Heads of Ramsar AA’s, NFPs, etc.) about Ramsar implementation, tools, objectives, Standing Committee discussions, etc.

National level (ct’d)

• Support (logistics, preparation, contacts) provided in the framework of Ramsar Advisory Missions (RAMs)

• Provision of advice/recommendation on Ramsar processes such as listing on Montreux Record (MR), necessary measures and potential sources of support to plan Ramsar Site removal from the MR

• Technical assistance for the establishment of Ramsar/ Wetlands Information Centres, training of Ramsar Centre staff, etc.

The example of WWF: “born in a wetland” (1961)

Nearly 50 years later, WWF is still at Donana…

• Freshwater habitat conservation:

– Buying wetland areas with generous private donation

– Securing Donana National Park establishment (1968)

– Supporting Ramsar Site designation (1982)

– Mining accident/Donana contamination (Montreux Record – early 2000’s)

– 1st Ramsar Advisory Mission (2003)

– 2nd Ramsar Advisory mission (cooperation Ramsar – World Heritage, December 2011)

• Water Security issues:– Illegal ground-water abstraction

for agriculture– Guadalquivir River dredging plans– Oil-Refinery project nearby

Donana

• Water footprint issues:– Intensive (partly illegal) strawberry

cultivation development

• Flagship species conservation issue:

– Iberian Lynx, Spanish Imperial Eagle

30 November, 2010 - 13

A co-founder in cmmonfor WWF and Ramsar

Overview of of WWF-generated Freshwater habitat conservation results

(2000-2009) • Over 100 million ha of

new FW protected areas established globally (of which ca. 80% under Ramsar)

• 10 new Ramsar CPs (of which 4 in Africa: Cameroon, C.A.R., Sudan, Mozambique)

• 4 out of the world’s 5 largest Ramsar Sites established

• Support and/or advice to the progress of Ramsar Regional Initiatives (MedWet, ChadWet, NigerWet, CongoWet, NileWet)

• National Wetlands Policy/regulations under development (Madagascar, Niger, Algeria, Tunisia)

WWF’s Wetland Conservation priorities

(2010-2020)

• Complete Africa-wide Ramsar CPs membership (eg. Angola, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe)

• Continue support to Africa’s contribution to Ramsar global target of 2500 Sites/250 mio ha

• Support formal trans-boundary Ramsar designations

• Extended support to selected Ramsar Regional Initiatives (MedWet, CongoWet, NileWet)

• Wetlands management projects in the field

Songwe River Trans-boundary Catchment Management Project

• one of the main tributaries to the Lake Malawi/Nyasa/Niassa

• located on the Malawi/Tanzania border

• Biodiversity issue = conservation of endemic cychlid fish breeding ground at Songwe River mouth

30 November, 2010 - 26

Success in Wetlands Conservation very much depends on having

the right people, at the right place, at the right time, and for the right duration

(within as well as outside WWF)