The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

3rd Pan-European Regional Meeting, Riga, Latvia, June 1998 -- brief report

More than 100 participants attended the Convention’s 3^rd Pan-European Regional Meeting, hosted in Riga by the Latvian Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development from 3-6 June 1998. Most European Contracting Parties were represented, as were several States which are in the process of adhesion, namely Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Cyprus, and Moldova. A wide range of international governmental and non-governmental organizations also took part.

The meeting addressed a wide range of policy and technical issues, including regional preparations for COP7 in May 1999. Technical issues on the agenda included Trans-boundary Cooperation, National & Regional Wetland Policies, Wetland Restoration & Rehabilitation, and Technical & Financial Capacity Building. Conclusions and Recommendations from each session are posted on this Web Site in English, French, and Spanish.

Finally, at the invitation of the Latvian hosts, participants were invited to visit either of two outstanding wetland areas: Lake Engure Ramsar site, or Kemeri National Park (which includes Lake Kanieris Ramsar site).

The Bureau is grateful to the staff of the Latvian Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development and to volunteers from the Latvian Fund for Nature, the Latvian Ornithological Society, and the WWF Latvia Programme Office who ensured the smooth running of the meeting. Financial assistance by the Governments of Austria, France, Germany, Hungary, Norway, Sweden and UK enabled the participation of some 30 sponsored delegates and provision of a range of logistical services, including simultaneous interpretation.

-- reported by Tim Jones, Regional Coordinator for Europe

Conclusions and Recommendations

Conclusions et Recommandations

Conclusiones y recomendaciones

Secretary General's opening address (English) (français)

Meeting Agenda

For further information, 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 ). Posted 16 June 1998, Dwight Peck, Ramsar.