The Global Environment Facility (GEF) Dugong and Seagrass Conservation Project unveiled its new, interactive and informative website that includes information about the project, resources for dugong and seagrass conservation, as well as information for project partners. The website was launched at an event hosted by Zayed University in Abu Dhabi, where the Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund (the MBZ Fund) publicly announced the GEF grant for the project.
The goal of the Dugong and Seagrass Conservation Project is to improve the conservation status of dugongs and their seagrass habitats across the Indian and Pacific Ocean basins. The project represents the first coordinated approach across a wide range of countries toward the conservation of dugongs and their seagrass habitats, covering 38 national projects in Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mozambique, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste and Vanuatu, managed by 26 local partners.
The CMS Dugong MOU Secretariat developed the project between 2011 and 2014, putting together documents for submission to UNEP and the GEF, and working with project partners to secure funding for the identified projects. The four-year Dugong and Seagrass Conservation Project commenced in January 2015, at which time the Dugong MOU Secretariat handed the coordination responsibility over to the MBZ Fund, who act as the executing agency of the project. The CMS Dugong MOU Secretariat remains a partner in the project, providing technical support to the MBZ Fund as necessary, through its technical advisors. UNEP is the implementing agency of the project.
For more information please visit the project website: http://www.dugongconservation.org/ .
