About Us

Background

Conservation and Sustainable Use of Wetlands in Nepal (CSUWN), also known as "Wetlands project", is a joint undertaking of the Government of Nepal (GoN), Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation (MFSC) is the executing agency. It was initiated in January 2008 as a pilot project with a five year duration. The two project sites are Ghodaghodi Lake Area (GLA) in the far-west region and Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve (KTWR) in the eastern region of Nepal.

The project addresses the root causes of wetland degradation and loss of wetland habitats by integrating wetland management and conservation issues into national policies and plans, strengthening national capacity and linking national actions with activities at two demonstration sites.

This project undertakes a combination of technical and institutional capacity building strategies from central to local levels. The project further supports the activities on collaborative management to enhance the access of women, poor and socially excluded (WPSE) groups as well as indigenous and wetland dependent communities (WDCs) to wetland resources for sustainable livelihoods.

CSUWN attempts to address a range of ecological, economical and social challenges at the two demonstration sites to combine conservation and development needs for local as well as global environmental benefits.

Goal

To ensure the maintenance and enhancement of wetland biodiversity and environmental goods and services for improved local livelihoods in Nepal

Objective

To strengthen national and local capacity on ecosystem management and sustainable use of wetlands biodiversity in Nepal.

Expected Outcomes

• Wetland biodiversity conservation values integrated into national policy and planning framework.
• Strengthened national institutional, technical and economic capacity and awareness for wetland biodiversity conservation and sustainable use
• Enhanced collaborative management of wetland resources for conservation and sustainable livelihoods

Strategy

The project attempts to address the root causes of wetlands degradation and loss by

• Strengthening national policy, capacity and awareness on wetlands
• Linking national actions at two demonstration sites.
• Employing existing inter-sectoral and multi-stakeholder structures and mechanisms wherever possible.
• Planning activities to influence wetlands policy and practice

Approach

• Using existing structure and mechanism
• Focusing on wetland conservation and the livelihood of Wetland Dependent Communities
• Forging Partnership with DDCs, VDCs, BZ institutions, UNDP supported projects, CFUGs, CBOs, other institutions, and civil societies to engender support for conservation and development.