On behalf of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety and my Minister, it is my pleasure to congratulate AEWA and its Secretariat to the 25th anniversary of AEWA.

We welcome the tireless efforts of AEWA and its Secretariat to improve the conservation status of migratory waterbirds. Among many issues, I would like to highlight in this regard the lead role of AEWA in the international efforts to reduce lead shot in particular in wetlands as well as the ongoing efforts to meaningfully address the illegal killing of birds, in particular in the Mediterranean Region, e.g. through "MIKT".

We trust that AEWA will continue to play a strong role in international nature conservation for waterbirds in the future, and that the Secretariat will continue to work hard to address the many challenges facing waterbird conservation today, such as habitat loss and climate change. I am also hopeful that AEWA will dedicate its resources fully to these daunting conservation challenges and put species conservation - rather than management of species - at the centre of its attention.

We look forward to continuing our good cooperation with AEWA and wish you and the AEWA the best of luck and energy in the years to come.

Dr. Christiane Paulus

Director-General 
Nature Conservation and
Sustainable Use of Natural Resources