Bonn, 6 November 2012 - Following
the recent accessions of Gabon and Zimbabwe to AEWA, the
Kingdom of Morocco and the Kingdom of Swaziland have now
also joined the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement.
The Agreement entered into force for Morocco on 1 December
2012 and will enter into force for Swaziland on 1 January
2013, thus increasing AEWA’s membership to 69 Parties.

Morocco:

The
Kingdom of Morocco is located in North Africa and shares
borders with Algeria to the East and Mauritania to the South.
To the West, it has a coast on the Atlantic Ocean that reaches
past the Strait of Gibraltar to the Mediterranean Sea. By
virtue of its position opposite Spain on the southern side
of the narrow Strait of Gibraltar, Morocco forms an ecological
bridge between Europe and the African continent, with fauna
and flora showing a mixture of Palearctic and Afrotropical
elements. It is also a significant bottleneck on a main
migration route between Europe and Africa for millions of
migratory waterbirds, which use the East Atlantic Flyway.

Morocco has relatively high levels of biodiversity
for a country of its size, with the avifauna being the most
notable. According to the BirdLife
Data Zone a total of 337 bird species are known
to occur in Morocco; 107
of these are migratory waterbirds listed under AEWA.
According to the IUCN Red List, out of these 107 species,
one is classified as Vulnerable (Marbled Teal Marmaronetta
angustirostris), one as Endangered (White-headed Duck
Oxyura leucocephala), two as Critically Endangered
(Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita and Slender-billed
Curlew Numenius tenuirostris) and six as Near Threatened
(Ferruginous Pochard Aythya nyroca, Black-winged
Pratincole Glareola nordmanni, Audouin's Gull Larus
audouinii, Corncrake Crex crex, Black-tailed
Godwit Limosa limosa and the Eurasian Curlew Numenius
arquata).

A total of 46 Important Bird Areas (IBAs)
have been identified in the country, with the majority concentrated
in the northern part. Examples are the Parc National de
Dakhla, the Msseyed or the Barrage Al Massira, all of which
have equally been identified under the Wings
Over Wetlands Critical Site Network Tool as
crucial for the conservation of migratory waterbirds and
wetlands.

Swaziland:

Located
in South East Africa, the Kingdom of Swaziland, though one
of the continent’s smallest countries, is endowed
with a remarkable variety of habitats, hosting a significant
variety of flora and fauna. Apart from its eastern border,
shared with Mozambique, Swaziland is completely surrounded
by South Africa. Its western half is mountainous, descending
to an open rural space to the east covered in grass or low
scrub, while the border to the east is dominated by the
escarpment of the Lebombo Mountains.

As a result of the altitudinal range and
consequent habitat variability, the country has high levels
of biodiversity. According to the BirdLife
Data Zone, Swaziland’s avifauna consists
of a total of 465 different bird species. Out of these,
64
migratory waterbird species are listed under AEWA,
including the Vulnerable Wattled Crane (Bugeranus carunculatus)
and the Endangered Grey-Crowned Crane (Balearica regolorum).
Swaziland is clearly of great importance for migratory waterbirds
using the East Atlantic and Black Sea/Mediterranean Flyways
and concerted action towards the conservation of these species
is therefore essential.

The UNEP/AEWA Secretariat warmly welcomes
Morocco and Swaziland to the “AEWA Family” and
looks forward to continuing to work closely with the Governments
of both countries and other national stakeholders in implementing
the Agreement in Morocco and Swaziland.