Crane Bank awards for wetland study in Uganda
Ramsar Crane Bank Award
The Ramsar Convention Secretariat is pleased to announce that Mr. Herizo Tiana Andrianandrasana and Mr. Osiman Mabhachi are the two winners of the first Ramsar Crane Bank Awards to promote the wise use concept of wetlands in the Africa region.
Mr.
Herizo Andrianandrasana, 32, is a Water and Forest Engineer
from Madagascar and has been working as the Ecological Monitoring Coordinator
of Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust Madagascar Programme since 2001.
He established a track record of achievement during his tenure with Durrell
Wildlife and has a good working knowledge of the Ramsar sites in Madagascar.
He was involved in the restoration and rehabilitation of several wetlands
and the elaboration of management plans for natural resources in collaboration
with key stakeholders. He has the potential to make outstanding contributions
to the wise use of the wetlands of Madagascar when he returns home after
the tour in Uganda.
Mr.
Osiman Mabhachi, 32, is an Agricultural Engineer from Zimbabwe.
He works for BirdLife Zimbabwe as a Conservation Officer and his main
responsibility is to facilitate integrated Wattled Crane and wetland conservation
activities in the Driefontein Grasslands Important Bird Area. Osiman has
over six years' successful working experience involving wetland conservation,
soil and water conservation, watershed management, and bird conservation
as well as water and sanitation. As recommended in Ramsar Resolution IX.14.
Osiman has a particular interest in linkages between wetlands conservation
and rural livelihood options. His other medium-term goal is to spearhead
the establishment of the Zimbabwe Wetlands Action Group as a forum to
facilitate information exchange among wetland management practitioners
when he returns to Zimbabwe after his training in Uganda.
With the support of the Crane Bank, the prize was awarded to these two African young professionals and will support their costs to travel to, and have a tour of duty for two weeks, in Uganda. The Wetlands Inspection Division of Uganda is the technical partner of this project.
The tour should allow the recipients to inspire themselves from the successful experience of Uganda in establishing the proper institutional and technical support for wetlands management.
The Secretariat and the Crane Bank would like to congratulate the two winners and urge more African females to apply next year.
-- Abou Bamba, Senior Advisor for Africa
For
further information about the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, please contact
the Ramsar Convention Secretariat, Rue Mauverney 28,
CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland (tel +41 22 999 0170, fax +41 22 999 0169,
e-mail 
).
Posted 22 August 2006, Dwight Peck, Ramsar.
