On February 7th, the High Commission for Water and Forests and the Fight against Desertification (HCEFLCD), in partnership with GREPOM / BirdLife Morocco and the German Cooperation, celebrated World Wetlands Day in Tangier. An event in which the IUCN Center for Mediterranean Cooperation (IUCN-Med) and the Rabat Scientific Institute presented the strategy and plan of action for the conservation of the Bustard (Otis tarda) in Morocco.

In addition, four partnership agreements were adopted. One of them signed by the HCEFLCD, the Faculty of Science and Technology of Tangier, the Moroccan Alliance for Climate and Sustainable Development and GREPOM / Birdlife Morocco, is part of the implementation Of the Great Bustard Conservation Action Plan. This agreement will allow the conservation of threatened species and their habitats as well as the implementation of monitoring, scientific monitoring and awareness-raising activities.

Although the Great Bustard (Otis tarda) is a species protected by Moroccan legislation, its population has declined significantly over the last 15 years. A conservation strategy and an action plan to preserve the Great Bustard in Morocco over the next 10 years have been developed by the Office of the High Commissioner for Waters and Forests and the Fight against Desertification and IUCN-Med, In collaboration with experts from the IUCN Commission and IUCN Members in Morocco such as GREPOM / Birdlife Morocco, as well as other international organizations, in line with the "one program" approach of IUCN.

The conservation strategy aims to safeguard the last major sites for the Great Bustard in Morocco, the Araoua and Tleta-Rissana leks, which are not yet granted a national protection designation. Key actions include minimizing collisions with power lines at the above sites by removing hazardous lines and installing beacon lines in bustard habitat in these areas.

The HCEFLCD organized this event in order to communicate the national strategy and the plan of action of the wetlands 2015-2024 and to bring together all the stakeholders around the objectives that will allow to reinforce the cooperation, conserve and to valorize the services Ecosystems made by these unique and lifelike ecosystems.

For more nformation: Caterine Numa

Photo: Great bustard (Otis tarda) on restored grassland. © SRB