The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

4th meeting of the Mediterrean Wetlands Committee, Sesimbra, Portugal, 21-23 May 2001

Fourth Meeting of the Mediterranean Wetlands Committee (MedWet/Com4)
Sesimbra, Portugal, 21-23 May 2001

DOC. MC4/03

Fourth Meeting of the Mediterranean Wetlands Committee
Sesimbra, Portugal, 21-23 May 2001

The draft Ramsar Strategic Plan 2003-2008 and the Mediterranean specificities

Historical

01 In 1992, the states and organisations that established the MedWet Initiative felt the need of a Mediterranean Wetlands Strategy (MWS), and included its preparation in the objectives of the MedWet1 project. During 1995 and 1996, when this region-specific strategy was drafted and debated [The MWS was endorsed by the Venice Conference on Mediterranean Wetlands (June 1996), and included in the Ramsar COP8 Resolution VII.22 (San José, Costa Rica, May 1999).], the 10 partners of MedWet1 [France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Convention on Wetlands, European Commission, Tour du Valat, Wetlands International and WWF International.] based it on the Ramsar Strategic Plan, that had been recently approved by COP6 (Brisbane, March 1996), in order to create synergy and to avoid confusion. The MWS was adopted by the Venice Conference (June 1996) that ended the MedWet1 project.

02 In the four years that followed, the MedWet Initiative focussed on the implementation of this strategy. It achieved considerable success in realising some of its objectives, but failed in some others. A detailed report on these achievements and failures was submitted to MedWet/Com3 (Djerba, Tunisia, April 2000). Already at that meeting some of the members thought that:

• the MWS overlapped to a great extent with the Ramsar Strategic Plan,
• while the Ramsar Strategic Plan had been formally adopted by the Conference of the Parties, the MWS was only "endorsed" or "recommended" by the Venice Conference, but never formally adopted by the Mediterranean governments
• the MWS, after 5 years, was to some extent outdated,
• the Mediterranean needed a more specific, concrete and formally adopted planning tool, to guide more effectively the work of the MedWet Initiative, which now has become an official component of the Ramsar Convention, during its second decade.

03 All MedWet/Com members should have received by now this Third Draft of the Ramsar Strategic Plan that has been circulated by the Ramsar Bureau in the three official languages to all Contracting Parties, partners and collaborators, with an invitation to provide comments by 30 May 2001. The draft is also attached as Appendix I for ease of reference.

04 In this spirit, the MedWet Coordinator, after consulting the three partner wetland centres (EKBY, TdV and SEHUMED), submitted comments and specific suggestions on the first two drafts of the Ramsar Strategic Plan 2003-2008, of which many were incorporated during the formulation of the 3^rd draft now under discussion, thus taking into account Mediterranean specificities.

05 A careful and analytic comparison of the MWS with the current draft of the Ramsar Strategic Plan 2003-2008 would indicate that to a large extent the objectives of the 1996 document are covered. Nevertheless the MedWet Coordination is proceeding with a more careful analysis of the current draft. Issues identified that should be brought to the attention of MedWet/Com, if any, will be tabled at the meeting for discussion.

For further information about MedWet or the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, please contact the Ramsar Convention Bureau, Rue Mauverney 28, CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland (tel +41 22 999 0170, fax +41 22 999 0169, e-mail ramsar@ramsar.org). Posted 22 April 2001, Dwight Peck, Ramsar.