The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced that Maputo National Park is one of five sites identified as having “exceptional potential” to be granted World Heritage status, noting that the final decision will be made in July by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
In a statement quoted by Lusa, the IUCN noted that the status should also extend to areas protecting up to 850,000 migratory birds, western chimpanzees, and numerous coral reef fish, as well as “incredible landscapes, marine areas, and zones of rich geodiversity and biodiversity.”
The document clarifies that the upcoming meeting, the 47th session of UNESCO, will take place between July 6 and 16 in Paris, France. “Besides Maputo National Park and the Coastal and Marine Ecosystems of the Bijagós Archipelago in Guinea-Bissau, the recommendation includes the Gola-Tiwai complex, an elephant refuge in Sierra Leone, Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in Vietnam, and Mount Kumgang in North Korea.” The IUCN considers these sites meet the criteria to be declared World Heritage sites, arguing that there is “a need for greater action to address the imbalance on the World Heritage list and to support underrepresented regions and countries.”
According to Tim Badman, Director of World Heritage at the IUCN, quoted in the information, the nomination of these extraordinary sites as World Heritage areas “is a positive step to fill gaps in the list and safeguard some of the planet’s most unique sites for nature and people.”
Maputo National Park neighbors iSimangaliso Wetland Park in South Africa, which has held World Heritage status since 1999. The geographical and ecological proximity between the two parks strengthens the arguments for the nomination, highlighting the benefits of joint management and scientific and conservation exchange between both countries.
This year, more than 120 IUCN experts reviewed a total of eight World Heritage nominations, evaluations that serve as recommendations to UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee.
Maputo National Park is located 70 kilometers from the city of Maputo and combines two historically established protected areas, on land and at sea: the Maputo Special Reserve and the Ponta do Ouro Partial Marine Reserve.
Source: Diário Económico
