GLAND — The Worldwide Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has introduced the inclusion of the Farasan Islands Reserve, managed by the Nationwide Middle for Wildlife Improvement, within the Inexperienced Listing of Protected and Conserved Areas, recognizing websites that meet worldwide requirements for efficient and equitable administration.
The worldwide recognition crowns the reserve’s success in implementing sound governance practices, adopting planning and administration approaches primarily based on greatest scientific requirements, and fascinating native communities in conservation packages.
The Inexperienced Listing evaluates protected areas primarily based on 4 key pillars: governance, built-in planning, administration effectiveness, and attaining tangible conservation outcomes.
The CEO of the Nationwide Middle for Wildlife Improvement, Dr. Mohammed Ali Qurban, mentioned the itemizing displays the sturdy help the environmental sector receives from the Kingdom’s management and demonstrates Saudi Arabia’s dedication to defending its marine and terrestrial ecosystems whereas strengthening its presence in international environmental indicators.
He famous that the achievement highlights the reserve’s distinctive worth and its alignment with the targets of the Saudi Inexperienced Initiative and the Nationwide Environmental Technique, which goal to guard 30 % of the Kingdom’s terrestrial and marine areas by 2030.
Past symbolic recognition, the itemizing carries strategic significance because it opens wider alternatives to draw environmental funding and worldwide funding for scientific analysis, whereas inserting the islands on the worldwide ecotourism map as a pure vacation spot dedicated to the very best sustainability requirements.
The Farasan Islands Reserve, one of many Kingdom’s most vital marine reserves, spans 5,657 sq. kilometers.
Its archipelago consists of greater than 266 coral islands, dwelling to wealthy biodiversity together with 180 plant species, 150 hen species, and 230 fish species.
The reserve can also be a pure habitat for the Farasan gazelle and mangrove forests, serving as a sanctuary for endangered species equivalent to sea turtles and dugongs, and internet hosting notable historic and cultural websites.
With this recognition, the Farasan Islands Reserve joins different Saudi protected areas listed on the IUCN Inexperienced Listing, reinforcing the Kingdom’s rising position in sustainable environmental administration.
The achievement provides to the reserve’s worldwide recognition, following its inclusion within the Ramsar Conference on Wetlands and its early membership in UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme, strengthening its standing as a nationwide mannequin the place wealthy biodiversity meets the very best international sustainability requirements.
