Press releases

World Migratory Bird Day 2020

World Migratory Bird Day will be celebrated by people across the world on Saturday, 10 October with the theme “Birds Connect Our World”.  The theme highlights the importance of conserving and restoring the ecological connectivity and integrity of ecosystems that support the natural movements of migratory birds and that are essential for their survival and well-being.

07 October 2020

Celebrating 25 Years of International Waterbird Conservation

For the past 25 years, millions of migratory waterbirds that link Africa, Europe and parts of Asia have benefitted from the collective work being carried out by countries and other actors under the framework of the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA). Signed on 16 June 1995 in The Hague, the Netherlands, the intergovernmental treaty dedicated to conserving migratory waterbirds across African and Eurasia has a geographical range that stretches across 119 countries. With currently 80 Contracting Parties, including 38 from Africa and 42 from Eurasia including the European Union, AEWA is the largest legally binding instrument concluded under the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS). 

16 June 2020

World Migratory Bird Day 2020 - Birds Connect Our World

World Migratory Bird Day will be celebrated by people across the world on Saturday, 9 May with the theme “Birds Connect Our World”.  The UN-led campaign aims to raise awareness of migratory birds and the importance of international cooperation to conserve them. It is organized by a collaborative partnership among two UN treaties - the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) - and the Colorado-based non-profit organization, Environment for the Americas (EFTA).

07 May 2020

World Migratory Bird Day: Birds Globally Threatened by Plastic Waste

Plastic pollution poses serious health risks to wildlife globally, affecting a wide range of species including whales, turtles, fish and birds. On World Migratory Bird Day, celebrated on 11 May, two UN wildlife treaties and conservationists around the world are calling for urgent action to stop plastic pollution by highlighting its negative effects on seabirds and other migratory birds.

09 May 2019

Countries Act Towards Safer Passage for Migratory Waterbirds

After five days of intense but always constructive discussions, the 7th session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) has come to a successful conclusion in Durban, South Africa. The triennial Meeting of the Parties (MOP) is the Agreement’s principal decision-making body and among the main decisions taken in Durban were the adoption of the Strategic Plan and the Plan of Action for Africa for the period 2019-2027 as well as agreement on key species action plans focusing on some of the African-Eurasian flyway’s most charismatic and endangered waterbirds.

08 December 2018

New Report on the Impact of Plastic on Migratory Waterbirds Presented to Governments at AEWA MOP7

Plastic seems to be on everyone’s lips these days, and we certainly don’t mean single-use straws. Global production of plastic has increased to more than 300 million tons a year, and some staggering 13 m tons of it ends up in the ocean. Plastic pollution poses serious health risks to wildlife, and a new report presented to governments at an international waterbird conference (AEWA MOP7) currently underway in Durban, has shown how migratory waterbirds are affected. However, increasing public awareness and changing habits have the potential to turn the tide.

08 December 2018

European Commission and Norway : Champions of Waterbird Conservation

Today Norway and the European Commission will be declared ‘Champions’ of waterbird conservation. The ceremony will take place during the Gala Dinner kindly offered by the Government of South Africa in the margins of the Seventh Meeting of the Parties to the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) currently underway in Durban.

07 December 2018

UN-Waterbird Conference Kicks Off in Durban, South Africa

The Seventh Session of the Meeting of the Parties to the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA MOP7) opened in Durban, Kwazulu Natal, South Africa today. The inter-governmental meeting is set to be the most important international conference on the conservation of migratory waterbirds this year, bringing together close to 300 participants from 81 countries, including 67 national delegations and the European Union, a range of non-governmental organizations and renowned experts from across the African-Eurasian region.

03 December 2018

World Migratory Bird Day: New Report Shows Upward Trend for Migratory Waterbirds

Bucking a major general trend, the overall status of waterbird populations listed on the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) has slightly improved over the last ten years, says a new report. The findings are being released ahead of World Migratory Bird Day, an annual, UN-backed global awareness-raising and environmental education campaign focused on migratory birds and the need for international cooperation to conserve them.

11 October 2018

World Migratory Bird Day: New Report Shows Upward Trend for Migratory Waterbirds

Bucking a major general trend, the overall status of waterbird populations listed on the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) has slightly improved over the last ten years, says a new report. The findings were released ahead of World Migratory Bird Day, an annual, UN-backed global awareness-raising and environmental education campaign focused on migratory birds and the need for international cooperation to conserve them.

11 October 2018