Conservation of Iranian Wetlands Project (CIWP)

About

The Conservation of Iranian Wetlands Project (CIWP) is a project between the Iran Government and UNDP/ GEF, started in 2004. The project’s national focal point is the Department of Environment, but with a Steering Committee that is the highest decision-making structure of the project, and will provide overall guidance and support to project implementation activities.

There are two demonstration sites (Lake Urmia and Lake Parishan) which are both globally significant wetland ecosystems. The project’s objective is to systematically remove or substantially decrease significant biodiversity and sustainability threats facing the two demonstration sites, while ensuring that the lessons learned through these demonstrations are absorbed within wetland protected area (WPA) management systems throughout Iran and mist particularly at a set of target replication sites.

Funding support

Project funds are provided by both Iran government and international party. The international budget is around 2.9 million USD and the Iran government commitment is around 9 million USD that could be counted as in-kind or in-cash.

Number of staff

The project is running by 13 staff in national and provincial offices. There are also 6 international and 4 national consultants who provide technical support for project’s activities.

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Work Areas

The project is designed around the premise that: Decision-makers and local communities will only support the sustainable management and restoration of wetlands if they are aware of (and benefit from) the multiple values of these areas, and if they are involved in their management.

The Project’s activities is released in a quarterly bulletin, and we have published 4 posters for public awareness. The Project has translated and published 2 IUCN guidelines about alien species in Farsi. We have also established an internet expert group in yahoo and send members reports on activities

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Expertise

The project provides training in 2 ways:

1- Training workshops: In the intersectoral level by holding several professional and training workshops for experts of governmental bodies especially our colleagues in the Department of Environment

2- Advisory workshops: Because of project goals to provide participatory management plans for its demonstration sites, the project has held several advisory workshops in both demonstration sites to prepare integrated management plans for both of them.

The project has a coordinator for public awareness who works specifically on related issues as “public awareness and communication coordinator” Also project has hired two consultants in national and international level to support the project in communication and public awareness issues.

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