Doha: The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MECC) organized a workshop titled ‘Activating the National Program for Effective Management of Protected Areas in the State of Qatar’, in collaboration with the Qatar National Commission for Education, Culture and Science and the UNESCO Office for the Gulf States and Yemen.
According to Qatar News Agency, the two-day workshop was attended by national and international officials, experts, and representatives from government agencies, academic institutions, and civil society organizations. It is part of Qatar’s efforts to enhance protected area management and comply with international environmental requirements.
Saleh Hassan Al Kuwari, Director of the Natural Reserves Department at the MECC, emphasized the workshop as a significant step in Qatar’s pursuit of environmental sustainability and its commitment to the Kunming-Montreal 2022 Global Biodiversity Framework. This framework aims to safeguard 30 percent of the world’s land and water by 2030.
The workshop served as a strategic platform for developing tools for integrated reserve management and establishing an institutional system ensuring continuity and efficiency, aligning with Qatar National Vision 2030. Topics discussed included biodiversity, achievements, challenges, and opportunities in protected areas.
Nawaf Jabr Al Nuaimi, Assistant Director of the Natural Reserves Department, highlighted Qatar’s success in expanding natural reserves, covering 25.5 percent of the land area and 2.28 percent of the marine area, totaling approximately 29 percent of the country’s area. These include significant sites like Khor Al Adaid and Al Reem Reserve.
Despite facing challenges like development pressures and climate change impacts, there are opportunities in ecotourism and sustainable resource use. The workshop aimed to address these challenges and explore practical solutions, assessing the protected area network and developing sustainable financing mechanisms.
This initiative complements MECC’s ongoing efforts to enhance reserve management. Previously, a program was launched to evaluate administrative effectiveness in various locations, ensuring compliance with international standards set by the Convention on Biological Diversity and the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
The program seeks to develop a transitional strategy from 2025 to 2028, focusing on intervention priorities, administrative planning, and capacity building of the national team through practical training and specialized workshops to improve national capabilities in environmental planning and management.