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BIODIVERSITY PROTECTION / STEERING COMMITTEES IN BRIEF | 113

MEDFUND ENHANCES THE EFFECTIVENESS
OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS IN THE

MEDITERRANEAN

Currently protecting 3,700 km of marine The members of the board also reviewed
2
and coastal areas in the Mediterranean, the progress made in the implementation
MedFund has created a new funding of activities by 8 MPAs benefitting from the PATRONS OF
window dedicated to marine protected environmental fund in the waters of Tuni-
areas benefitting from a high degree of sia, Albania, Turkey and Morocco. Discus- NATURE FOCUSED
protection. Supported by the MAVA Foun- sions also focused on the opportunities
dation, a partner of the Mediterranean offered by the new support provided by ON THE OCEAN
environmental fund, the Highly Protected the Global Environment Fund (The GEF)
Mediterranean Initiative is aimed at limi- for MPAs in 6 Mediterranean countries for On Thursday 24 March 2022, with Monaco Ocean
ting anthropogenic pressures leading to the period 2022-2026, in partnership with Week in full swing, Patrons of nature met alongside
the degradation of ecosystems, including the MedPAN network representing a sum the Sovereign Prince for a working lunch in Monaco.
a sharp decrease in fish populations and of 5 million dollars. This exclusive group of personalities from the
a decline in emblematic species. Several world of business, philanthropy and conservation,
scientific studies have shown the positive founded in 2010 and inspired by the mission of the
impact on biodiversity of a strong and sus- IN International Union for the Conservation of Nature,
tainable protection status. FIGURES took up the cause of the ocean on this occasion.

Consequently, the 20 MedFund Board ■ 75% of fish stocks
th
of Directors meeting, which was held du- in the Mediterranean
ring Monaco Ocean Week 2022, under are overfished
the presidency of Tunisia, represented (source: FAO Report on the
by its Minister of the Environment, Lei- global situation of fisheries
la Chikhaoui-Mahdaoui, focused on the and aquaculture 2020)
conduct of this initiative. The directors
analysed candidate applications for marine
protected areas (MPAs) in Croatia, Turkey,
Albania and Morocco that responded to
the call for expression of interest launched
at the end of 2021 in Monaco.

© JeanMarie LIOT