Discussion of substantive business got under way on the second day of the Seventh Session of the Meeting of Parties to AEWA on Wednesday, 5 December 2018. The first item discussed was the AEWA Strategic Plan 2019-2027, with Parties acknowledging that it contained ambitious objectives and for full implementation more resources would be required. Given current financial constraints, priority should be focused on the most pressing actions.

The seventh Meeting of the Parties (MOP7) to the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) opened on Tuesday, 4 December in Durban, Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa, under the theme “Beyond 2020: Shaping Flyway Conservation for the Future”. The meeting was officially opened by Fernando Spina as Chair of AEWA MOP6, who thanked the Government of South Africa and the Municipality of Durban for hosting the meeting.

Today, the Nature Conservation Sector (NCS) of the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency, Ministry of Environment, was declared the winner of the AEWA Conservation Award. The Conservation Award for the institutional category has been presented at the opening ceremony of the 7th Meeting of the Parties in Durban, South Africa.

Today, David Alan Stroud MBE, Senior Ornithologist at the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, was declared Honorary Patron of the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA). David Stroud has been part of the bedrock of AEWA since its inception. He has contributed widely to the development and implementation of the Agreement with involvement across the board in all aspects of its work.