Photo:©FAO

Ankara – A ten-day training programme on protected area establishment, participatory management planning and monitoring, organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in cooperation with the Nature and Conservation Centre (DKM), began this week in Soğuksu National Park, Kızılcahamam, with the participation of technical experts from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The programme forms part of the project “Conservation and Sustainable Management of Turkey’s Steppe Ecosystems”, which is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

The training programme is designed for groups of 25 people and aims:

• to build general knowledge of protected areas with a special focus on planning steps and latest approaches;
• to strengthen the understanding of planners, protected area managers, land users and other key stakeholders regarding their key roles in promoting the development and implementation of integrated and participatory protected area planning, with an emphasis on protecting biodiversity and the values of natural resources, managing invasive species, restoring landscapes and mitigating climate change impacts;
• to increase the expertise of participants in establishing protected areas, protected area management planning and monitoring;
• to widen broaden knowledge of emerging techniques in protected area management through indoor and practical exercises linked to case studies;
• to develop capacities to analyse the benefits and challenges of stakeholder engagement related to protected areas, and to establish good governance mechanisms to ensure the cooperative management of protected areas.

Haydar Fersoy, FAO Senior Fishery and Aquaculture Officer, emphasized the context of the training programme, underlining the importance of the surrounding Steppe ecosystem for food security. He explained that the training will provide an important contribution to the sustainable conservation and management of Steppe ecosystems.

In his opening speech, Ismail Üzmez, General Manager of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, General Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks, stated that “the subject of establishment, planning and monitoring of protected areas is an important issue for the whole world. The training programme will allow participants to update their current knowledge of these issues and broaden their experience”.

Üzmez also expressed his certainty that the training participants will integrate the newly acquired knowledge effectively into their studies and practice. He also emphasized that protected areas are important tools for the conservation of rare and priority species and habitats as well as other natural values. In addition, he made the case for standards including basic criteria and indicators to determine the location of these areas, and reaffirmed the importance of management plans for protected areas.

The training programme will continue until mid-June 2021.