Capacity Building in Nigeria through the AEWA Small Grants Fund
An area invaded by invasive typha at the Hadejia –Nguru Wetlands © MG Boyi, NCF
The Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) has successfully completed a project on enhancing capacity and raising awareness for waterbird conservation, implemented over the period 2018-2019 and funded under the AEWA Small Grants Fund (SGF). Project activities included, among others, the conduct of waterbird monitoring trainings and waterbird counts, the development of a schedule for planning waterbird monitoring at identified sites and the establishment of Site Support Groups (SSGs) to sustain future waterbird and habitat conservation activities.
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3rd Meeting of the AEWA White-winged Flufftail International Working Group: Conservation Actions Revised in the Light of New Groundbreaking Discoveries
White-winged Flufftail (Sarothrura ayresi) © Arno Ellmer
Government representatives and conservation experts gathered at Verlorenkloof Estate, near Dullstroom, Mpumalanga Province, South Africa for the third meeting of the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement's International Working Group for the White-winged Flufftail (Sarothrura ayresi) (AEWA WwF IWG). The Meeting took place close to the Middelpunt Wetland which was recently discovered to be a breeding site for the elusive species; previously the only known breeding site was Berga Wetland in Ethiopia.
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Capacity for Waterbird Monitoring Reinforced in Mauritania
Participants during a session on waterbird identification © AMISO
With support from the AEWA Small Grants Fund (SGF), the Mauritanian conservation NGO AMISO (Association mauritanienne des amis des oiseaux et de la protection des espèces animales menacées d'extinction) has successfully implemented a project designed to enhance technical and material capacity for waterbird identification and monitoring in Mauritania. The project has a focus on the Aftout Essahili lagoon, a peripheral zone of Diawling National Park (PND) in southwestern Mauritania.
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Countries to Discuss Urgent Conservation Action for Globally Threatened Lesser White-fronted and Red-breasted Geese in Romania
Left: Red-breasted Goose (Branta ruficollis) by Daniel Mitev - Right: Lesser White-fronted Goose (Anser erythropus)by Ingar Jostein Øien
Bonn, 7 November 2019 – Representatives from over 20 countries and international partner organizations are meeting in Bucharest, Romania during 11-15 November 2019 to attend the
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AEWA SGF Contributes to Increased Capacity for Conservation of Rift Valley Lakes in Kenya
Volunteers counting birds at Lake Bogoria, Kenya © Nature Kenya
Small-scale funding from AEWA has contributed to the successful conduct of the 2018 annual waterbird counts in Kenya, in the framework of a recently concluded project carried out by conservation NGO Nature Kenya - the East Africa Natural History Society (EANHS). The funding awarded to Nature Kenya under the AEWA Small Grants Fund primarily co-funded some activities related to the conduct of the 2018 International Waterbird Census (IWC) in Kenya, including the training of volunteers involved in the counts.
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World Migratory Bird Day in Focus at UN Day Celebrations in Bonn
Information materials at the UNEP/AEWA booth © Florian Keil
The Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and its associated Agreements also called the CMS Family took part in the annual UN Day celebrations on Bonn's Market Square on 12 October. Acting Executive Secretary joined the CMS Family team, meeting with Mayor and other city officials, heads other UN agencies, members of the diplomatic corps, and representatives of other organizations participating in the event.
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Thousands Gear up for World Migratory Bird Day's Second Peak Celebration on 12 October
World Migratory Bird Day will be celebrated around the world on 12 October 2019.
The second peak day celebration of World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) 2019 is taking place on Saturday, 12 October, and an astonishing number of events have been registered around the globe.
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Malawi – Party No 80 - AEWA
The Republic of Malawi is acceding to AEWA becoming the 80th Party on 1 September.
The Republic of Malawi is acceding to AEWA becoming the 80th Party on 1 September. It is at the same time joining the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS). Malawi, capital Lilongwe, is a landlocked country of Southern Africa with a population of 18 million people and an area of 118, 484 km2. It has borders with Zambia and the United Republic of Tanzania to the north and with Mozambique to the south. The Great Rift Valley runs through the country, which also has shores on the west side of Lake Malawi (also known as Lake Nyasa).
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Inger Andersen Visits CMS, AEWA and EUROBATS
Jacques Trouvilliez, Executive Secretary of AEWA (far right), briefing the newly-appointed UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme, Inger Andersen (second from left), during her visit to the CMS Family in Bonn © Aydin Bahramlouian
Inger Andersen, the newly-appointed Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), came to Bonn to meet the staff of the CMS Family as well as other Bonn-based UN agencies. The visit was part of a series of meetings in Europe, including attending the opening of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Geneva.
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Further Progress Made in Planning Conservation Action for the Grey Crowned-crane
A flock of Grey Crowned-cranes (Balearica regulorum) near the Kaku wetland, Uganda © Sergey Dereliev, www.dereliev-photography.com
The AEWA International Working Group for the Grey Crowned-crane (GCC IWG) met for the first time in Entebbe, Uganda from 24 to 26 July. After intensive discussions, considerable progress was made in drawing up a concrete implementation plan covering the period to 2022, with specific national activities complementing wider regional and international tasks.
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