REPORT
MALAYSIAN WETLAND
NEXUS WITH RAMSAR
CONVENTION
By Amanda Lee Siek Hsia
Picture from malaysia.wetlands.org
T
he Ramsar Convention is an international
treaty for the conservation and sustainable
utilization of wetlands taking cognizance of
the important ecological functions of wetlands
that embody their economic, cultural, scientific,
and recreational value. It is named after the city
of Ramsar in Iran, where the Convention was
signed in 1971.
Malaysia with six Ramsar sites totalling
331,510 acres of wetlands of international
importance became a member of Ramsar
Convention on March 10, 1997.
It is therefore important that all Malaysian
stakeholders involved in development works,
particularly practicing engineers understand
the importance of the function of wetlands to
the ecosystem of the country and Malaysia’s
commitment to the Ramsar convention.
The Ramsar List of Wetlands globally includes
2208 Sites (known as Ramsar Sites) covering over
210,734,269.41 ha (520,735,720.3 acres). The
definition of Ramsar wetlands may include, among
others, the areas of marine water the depth of
which at low tide does not exceed six meters as
well as fish ponds and paddy fields.
Presently there are 169 contracting parties, up
from 21 initial signatory nations in 1971. The state
parties meet every three years as the Conference
of the Contracting Parties (COP).
With its headquarters at Gland, Switzerland,
the Ramsar Convention is managed by a standing
committee, a scientific review panel, and a
secretariat. It works closely with the International
Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCU).
The Convention's mission is the conservation
and wise use of all wetlands through local
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