PROTECTED AREAS MANAGEMENT PROJECT

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The Protected Areas Management Project aims at improving the management, and protection of selected national parks, with a focus on biodiversity conservation for the overall improvement of the local population's welfare. For this purpose, the components will: 1) reinforce the institutional capacity of the Directorate General of Forestry, and the Ministry of Environment, for a sustainable protected areas management. Training, technical assistance (TA), and scientific studies will support a strong regional focus on modules targeting park management personnel, and potential partners - nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the private sector - in a management participatory approach; 2) manage and restore unique, and distinct ecosystems (wetlands, arid mountains, savanna, and desert) in the three national parks (Ichkeul, Bouhedma, and Jbil), assist in the development of eco-tourism activities, and, establish community development plans, compatible with the objectives of sustainable biodiversity conservation. Management plans will emphasize on technical aspects - inventory, infrastructure, surveillance - and on strategic issues, such as participatory reviews, and assessment of practices by local communities, in addition to scientific monitoring in the sustainable use of natural resources; and, 3) build public support for biodiversity conservation, targeting priority groups, including that of specific stakeholders, through delivery mechanisms such as mass media, formal and informal education, and, through the development of linkages with local NGOs, schools, and other organizations.