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COORDINATING COMMITTEE | contacts
Chair Prof Mohamed Elyes Kchouk, Tunisia; Dr Meriem Kaid Harche,
Algeria;
Dr Moustafa Fouda, Egypt;
Prof Mohamed Fennane, Morocco;
Dr Barbouche Naima, Tunisia.
Status Formally operational since 2004 after endorsement by the governments of Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia.
Member countries
4: Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia; subject to endorsement 2: Libya and Mauretania.
Context There is deep common concern throughout the North African region over environmental sustainability issues, many of which can be better managed given adequate taxonomic services. Priorities include reducing pesticide pollution; the identification, control and eradication of invasive alien species and the irreversible loss of genetic resources through ongoing habitat destruction. Capacities for the assessment, study and systematic observation and evaluation of biodiversity need to be reinforced at both national and sub-regional levels. A national and sub-regional initiative supported by international cooperation is an effective means to assisting with the protection of the ecosystems and the conservation of biological and genetic resources.
Goals and Priorities
- Develop capacity in taxonomy, collection
resources, reference material and the use of of modern taxonomic
technologies.
- Promote scientific collaboration and
facilitate exchange of specimens.
- Develop electronic databases and
information management.
- Integrate taxonomy with other sectors.
Current activities
- Morphological and biochemical description
of phytopathogenic and symbiotic fungi (Algeria).
- Development of the BioMAP project
(Egypt).
- Monitoring the biodiversity in national
parks within the scope of the programme Operation Wallacea
(OpWall) supported by the British Council (Egypt).
- Inventories of genetic resources for
agricultural crops and development of an action plan for
conservation (Tunisia).
- Inventories of protected areas and urban parks (Tunisia).
Recent achievements
- Organisation of workshops and trainings,
e.g. "IUCN training on guidelines for applying criteria" (Egypt),
"Taxonomy and Red Data Listings" (Morocco), "Workshop on the
assessment of human resources (taxonomists and parataxonomists)
and of taxonomic needs" (Tunisia).
- Training of about 60 rangers in
biodiversity monitoring in Protected Areas and implementation of
the BioMAP software for data analysis (Egypt).
- Application of the IUCN evaluation scheme to measure the performance of the national parks of the country (RAPPAM) (Egypt).
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