VIENTIANE, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced Wednesday it will launch a regional project to enhance the resilience of wetlands in Lower Mekong countries on the occasion of World Wetlands Day which falls on Feb. 2.
The Mekong WET project will be implemented through 2020, according to Lao state-run news agency KPL.
Mekong WET will help Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam to address their commitments to the Ramsar Convention, an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands, and to achieve the Aichi Biodiversity Targets.
There are a total of 28 Ramsar sites or wetlands of international importance in the four Mekong WET countries.
The project will develop management plans with its focus on climate change adaptation and resilience building in 10 selected Ramsar sites and improve regional collaboration on trans-boundary wetlands management.
The project also aims to share lessons and approaches with a further 18 Ramsar sites, as well as a number of potential or proposed new sites in the four Mekong WET countries.
Wetlands, like marshes, rivers, mangroves, coral reefs, and other coastal and inland habitats, have many important functions, including the regulation of water flows, the provision of clean water and carbon storage.
In the Lower Mekong region, millions of people rely on wetlands for their survival.
