The 13th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP13) was held at the Festival Arena in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, from 21 to 29 October 2018. During these days Contracting Parties convene to assess progress in the implementation of the Convention and the wise use of wetlands and plan their own work and that of the Secretariat for the next triennium. The theme for COP13 was “Wetlands for a Sustainable Urban Future”.

JICA HQ hosted a side event with the Ramsar Secretariat and the Ministry of the Environment Japan (MoEJ) to discuss how to facilitate the wise use of urban and peri-urban wetlands on 26th Oct. Based on the practical examples on the management of wetlands in Iran(Anzali Wetland), El Salvador, Papua New Guinea (PNG) and Japan, we discussed how we could further advance the implementation of Ramsar decisions such as Resolution XI.11 Principle for the Planning and Management of Urban and Peri-Urban Wetland. Mr.Aoki, chief advisor of the JICA Expert Team (JET), had a presentation about  “The raising awareness on (1) functions of the Anzali wetland (biological and cultural importance) and (2) significance of the river basin approach (e.g. sediment, water treatment, waste management) to remove the wetland from Motreux Record” in the side event.

The other side event “Networking of Littoral Wetlands of the Caspian Sea to Conserve Unique Ecosystem through International Transboundary Cooperation” was conducted by the JET on 27th Oct. Mr.Aoki explained the outline of the Anzali Wetland Ecological Management Project Phase II. Mr.Watanabe, wetland ecosystem conservation expert of JET, explained the result of satellite tracking survey of migratory birds and urged that networking of littoral wetlands of the Caspian Sea is very important. JET hopes the event will be a first step of future corroborating between Iran and the other countries around the Caspian Sea and international organizations.