Joint action announced for Skadar Lake
Shkoder, Albania, 16 January 2014
The sustainable future of Skadar Lake, natural border between Albania and Montenegro, depends on the coordinated action of the two countries. As announced at today’s meeting in Shkoder, IUCN Programme Office for South Eastern Europe (IUCN SEE) is partnering with the Institute for Nature Conservation in Albania (INCA), Green Home of Montenegro and protected area and nature conservation authorities to work towards the effective management of this lake's biodiversity.
Being the largest on the Balkan Peninsula, Skadar Lake witnessed a number of political agreements toward its improved management and international conservation efforts. Despite its extraordinary values, several unsustainable patterns can still be observed in the area, such as the weak management of biodiversity and natural resources, unplanned urbanization and illegal construction, poaching and human disturbance of species.
“The goal of IUCN is to create a network that would gather stakeholders from Albania and Montenegro and support their work on the sustainable management of Skadar Lake”, said Boris Erg, Director of IUCN’s Programme Office for South-Eastern Europe. “Wise use of lake’s biodiversity will assure the development of the local economy and preserve this protected area’s natural values and resources for future generations”.
The joint action is supported by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, and aims to strengthen law enforcement, increase the participation of civil society organizations in monitoring and protected area management, and raise awareness on the importance of biodiversity conservation among key stakeholders and resource managers. The partners will closely cooperate with Public Enterprise National Parks of Montenegro - Skadar Lake National Park management authority and the Department of Protected Areas in the Forestry Services Directorate in Shkodra.
Covering an area of 5,490 km2, Skadar is the largest lake on the Balkan Peninsula. It shows a high diversity of plants and animals, totalling around 930 species of algae, 497 vascular plants, and 430 zooplankton and microfauna species. It is home to 53 fish and 51 herpetofauna species, 282 bird species, and 50 mammals species. Due to the high biological diversity it is subject to a number of national and international designations - in Montenegro it has status of a National Park while it is a Nature Reserve in Albania. Internationally it is designated as Ramsar and Emerald site, and an Important Bird and Plant Area.
For further information:
Aleksandra Nesic, Operations Officer, IUCN Programme Office for South Eastern Europe
Tel: +381-11-2272-411, Mobile: +381-63-357-407, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
www.iucn.org/southeasterneurope
About the Project
“Supporting the Long-Term Sustainable Management of Transboundary Lake Skadar” is a 3 year long IUCN project that intends to foster the effective management of biodiversity of Skadar Lake by improving practices and capacity for management of protected areas in Albania and Montenegro.
About IUCN
IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, is the world’s oldest and largest global environmental organization, with more than 1,200 government and NGO members and almost 11,000 volunteer experts in some 160 countries. IUCN’s European region covers the European continent, Russia and Central Asia, and includes the European Union overseas entities. IUCN Programme Office for South Eastern Europe (IUCN SEE) promotes improved governance of natural resources and biodiversity, and supports initiatives to conserve biodiversity and manage ecosystems for human well-being. Working closely with IUCN Members and Commissions, it shapes regional policy and supports two flagship initiatives: Dinaric Arc Initiative and European Green Belt.
www.iucn.org/southeasterneurope
About INCA
Institute for Nature Conservation in Albania (INCA) is an NGO established in July 2000, seated in Tirana and operating in the country and region through its partner organizations. INCA’s main goal is to facilitate professional capacity building through training and participatory approach, to help conservation of nature and protect Albanian flora and fauna, supporting the rural development of the country. It focuses on biodiversity assessment, protected areas and river basin management, and implements projects in Albania and in transboundary context. INCA is a member of IUCN and the Global Water Forum (GWF), and it represents WWF in Albania. It leads the national NGO network “Nature Conservation” since April 2013.
About Green Home
NGO Green Home was founded by graduated students of biology science in 2000, as a non-governmental, non-profit and non-political organization. The organization appeared from the need for participation of great number of citizens in protection and conservation of environment, as well as taking an active role in civil society development through respect for biodiversity and efforts on sustainable development. We are dedicated to environmental protection and environmental improvements that foster a sustainable future and lead to social and economical improvements in the communities at national level. In order to do this, we are committed to work with different range of stakeholders to foster partnerships and work together to provide sustainable future and have strong recognition world wide as Ecological State of Montenegro.
About Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund
The Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund is a joint initiative of l’Agence Française de Développement, Conservation International, the European Union, the Global Environment Facility, the Government of Japan, the MacArthur Foundation and the World Bank. A fundamental goal is to ensure civil society is engaged in biodiversity conservation.
