Guidelines for Sustainable Management of Wetlands.

These guidelines aim to provide for sustainable management of wetlands that would contribute to (i) improve livelihoods while maintaining ecosystem functions; (ii) facilitate and provide a framework for sustainable management of wetlands; and (iii) maintain essential ecological and hydrological functions. The proposed framework is built on 3 hierarchical levels. The first is the level with the overall vision and which is responsible for setting the stage for the next levels. The next level is the management objectives specifically designed to achieve the vision. Finally is the lowest level that contains (i) the specific details and targets and (ii) timeframes and responsibilities required to operationalize each objective, and it deals with short term activities undertaken at a more localized scale.
The main steps of the sustainable management of wetlands are the following, and the document establishes in detail what are the criteria and procedures that must be adopted to carry out these steps (i) identification and establishment of wetlands; (ii) preparation of wetland integrated management plan, including objectives of wetland management, needs of key stakeholders, factors affecting the features, monitoring, resources, communication; (iii) selection of activities to be carried out; (iv) wetlands resource use permits in terms of harvesting, CITES considerations, trade-in wetland-derived products, foreign investment; (v) undertaking of surveys and/or researches and tourism; (vi) rehabilitation; (vii) development of an efficient institutional and legal framework; (viii) communication, education, and public awareness; (ix) partnership and cooperation at district/region, national, regional, and international levels.