Countdown towards MOP 3, Dakar, Senegal, 23 - 27 October 2005
The AEWA Secretariat has received 112 registrations as at 26 September 2005 for the third Meeting of the Parties taking place in Dakar, Senegal, in four weeks' time. Those who have not yet registered are reminded to do so. The procedure for obtaining an entry visa and the recommended vaccinations may need to be started some weeks in advance. Please download the meeting documents at
http://www.unep-aewa.org/meetings/en/mop/mop3_docs/mop3.htm.
The AEWA Team is looking forward to meeting all participants in Dakar on 23 October.
AEWA...back to the roots
On 27-28 August 2005 the AEWA Secretariat took part in the Dutch Bird Fair, the Vogelfestival, which was held in the Oostvaardersplassen wetland, Lelystad, the Netherlands, by the Dutch BirdLife partner Vogelbescherming Nederland. About 9,000 visitors came to see 97 different stands selling binoculars, cameras and outdoor equipment, wildlife books and photographs as well as holiday trips and everything to do with birds, and to take part in the workshops, birdwatching excursions and special events for both adults and children. [read on]
"The AEWA Award goes to...
Mr. David A. Stroud in the Individual Category and the Government of the Netherlands, represented by the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) in the Institutional Category are the winners chosen to receive the AEWA Waterbird Conservation Award 2005 to be presented at the opening ceremony of the Third Meeting of the Parties on 23 October 2005 (Dakar, Senegal). The award is for their outstanding contributions to the development and implementation of the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement, as decided by the Standing Committee at its meeting on 4-5 July 2005. In addition, Dr Gerard C. Boere will be declared Honorary Patron of AEWA for his crucial role in the process of drafting and negotiating the Agreement. [read on]
The Eu joins AEWA
The European Community has deposited its instrument of accession to AEWA and will become 51th Contracting Party as of 1 October 2005.
The European Community currently has 25 Member States. The EU Birds Directive, which celebrated its 25th Anniversary last year, provides a framework for bird conservation across the EU, defining the minimum legal requirements and standards that all Member States must comply with, to protect and conserve wild birds and their habitats in their territory and in the EU as a whole. Many of these birds migrate to wintering areas located outside Europe. One of the findings presented at the Conference held at the occasion of the 25th Anniversary of the Bird Directive was that long-distance migrants are still in decline. The ratification of AEWA by the EU therefore is of high importance for the EU as well as for AEWA. In a combined effort we will try to halt the loss of biodiversity by 2010, which is the target set for Europe. The EU has ratified the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Ramsar Convention and the Bern Convention. The UNEP/AEWA Secretariat is pleased to welcome the European Community on behalf of the Contracting Parties.
The Republic of Ghana joins AEWA
The Republic of Ghana has deposited its instrument of accession to AEWA and will become 50th Contracting Party as of 1 October 2005.
The Republic of Ghana shares borders with Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Togo to the east and Burkina Faso to the north while, to the south, it borders the Gulf of Guinea with a coastline of some 550 km, from where it extends inland for about 675 km. Three main ecological zones are identifiable in the country: the forest zone in the south-western part of the country, the interior savanna and the coastal savanna. 725 bird species occur in the Republic of Ghana, of which a number is covered by the Agreement, e.g. the Royal Tern (Sterna maxima), the Sanderling (Calidris alba), the Western Reef Egret (Egretta gularis), the Spotted Redshank (Tringa erythropus), the Sandwich Tern (Sterna sandvicensis), the Black Tern (Chlidonias niger) and the White-faced Whistling Duck (Dendrocygna viduata).
Ghana has ratified the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, the Convention to Combat Desertification (CCD), the Convention on Climate Change (FCCC), the World Heritage Convention and the Ramsar Convention. The UNEP/AEWA Secretariat is pleased to welcome the Republic of Ghana on behalf of the Contracting Parties.
If you are interested to know more about issues related to the work of AEWA please read our articles...
Saving a charismatic bird [read on]
The mysteries of bird migration [read on]
Planting seeds of awareness [read on]
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