Bonn, 28 October 2022 - The Secretariat of the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (UNEP/AEWA) is pleased to announce the call for applications for a regional-level Training of Trainers (ToT) workshop on the Flyway Approach to the Conservation and Wise Use of Waterbirds and Wetlands, scheduled to take place from 6 to 10 February 2023 in Mauritius, at the kind invitation of the Government of Mauritius.

The workshop is being co-organized by the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat and the Mauritius National Parks and Conservation Service (NPCS), in close collaboration with the UNEP/CMS Secretariat, Ramsar Secretariat and the Wadden Sea Flyway Initiative. It has been made possible thanks to the generous financial and in-kind contributions from the Government of Mauritius and the European Commission’s Global Public Goods and Challenges (GPGC) Thematic Programme Strategic Cooperation Agreement (SCA) with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The ToT course aims to enhance knowledge and understanding on the flyway approach to the conservation and sustainable use of waterbirds and wetlands as well as ensure a sustainable approach to training by better equipping participants with skills for the design and delivery of similar training courses at the national level. It will be delivered using existing training tools/resources including the Flyway Training Kit (FTK) developed under the UNEP/GEF African-Eurasian Wings Over Wetlands (WOW) Flyway Project, the training kit for waterbird identification and counting developed by the French Biodiversity Agency (OFB) and guidelines for the International Waterbird Census and the BirdLife International framework for monitoring Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas.

Potential candidates targeted for this course include technical and professional personnel from both governmental and non-governmental institutions involved in the field of higher education/pedagogy or environmental / wildlife conservation and management and with experience in teaching/training, capacity building or awareness-raising. Further information on the qualifications for candidates can be found in the detailed Terms of Reference.

Applications are welcome from the following Small Island Developing States and Island Groups: Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius (including Rodrigues Island) and Seychelles, as well as Mayotte, Réunion and the Scattered islands of the Indian Ocean (France).

English and French will be the working language for the ToT course. Interested qualified candidates from eligible countries are encouraged to submit their applications before the deadline of 18 November 2023, using the dedicated application form. For the pre-selection process, all applications must be submitted to the AEWA National Focal Point in their respective country (or AEWA Contact Person, in the case of Non-Party States), with a copy to the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat (evelyn.moloko@un.org and birgit.drerup@un.org).

Further information on the ToT course can be obtained from the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat.