Press Release 01 October 2003

UK Government Helps the Management of the Rupununi and Iwokrama Wetlands

Iwokrama in collaboration with the Guyana Environmental Protection Agency, the University of Guyana, The North Rupununi District Development Board (NRDDB), The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT), University of London - Royal Holloway College, and the Open University is launching a £132,520 three year wetlands management project in the Rupununi and Iwokrama Forest.

The funding for this project comes from the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' "Darwin Initiative for the Survival of Species". The project will help to effectively manage globally important wildlife and habitats in the North Rupununi and Iwokrama Forest.

The North Rupununi and Iwokrama Forest Wetlands are of global conservation significance with 88 bat species, over 400 types of fish and 500 bird species. The area also supports endangered species such as Black Caiman, Giant Otter, Jaguar, Harpy Eagle and Giant River Turtles. The area is also the homeland of the Makushi Amerindians that rely on the wetlands natural resources and habitats for their survival.

The project will contribute to effective collaborative management of the area which finds itself under increasing potential threat with the improvements to the Georgetown-Lethem road and increasing agricultural expansion in northern Brazil. The project will result in building capacity of local communities to monitor and manage the wetlands, and assess the impacts that different land uses are having on wildlife in the region. The aim of the project is to link conservation and sustainable development, to save the area for both wildlife and people.

Notes to Editors

• The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) is the largest international wetland conservation charity in the UK. WWT's mission is to conserve wetlands and their biodiversity.
• The full project partnership includes: WWT; Royal Holloway, University of London; Open University; Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development; North Rupununi District Development Board; the Guyana Environmental Protection Agency; and the University of Guyana.
• Key project outputs include: local community members and staff within partner organisations trained in monitoring and management techniques; Rupununi Field Manual - manual for species and habitat monitoring, Rupununi Ecosystems Management Plan - management plans for key habitats and species of the region.
• The Darwin Initiative was first announced at the Rio Summit in 1992. Projects are selected which will provide long-term benefits to the region after the conclusion of the UK contribution, and which would not otherwise be carried out without the funding.
• The projects help developing countries to fulfil commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity, which was signed at the Rio Summit, and has the support of more than 180 governments.
• The British Prime Minister announced an extra £7m for the Darwin Initiative funding in August 2002. The existing annual budget was £3m, which has been boosted to £4m in 2003, and will go up to £7m by 2005. This year's £4m includes a total of £1,980,104 for the 34 new projects which have won funding.