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Plans afoot to convert Wadi Wurayah 
into National Park

FUJAIRAH - The Fujairah Municipality in cooperation with the Emirates Wildlife Society and WWF (EWS-WWF) announced on Wednesday the next step in converting the protected area of Wadi Wurayah into a working National Park.

An official memorandum of understanding has been signed between the two entities to mark the collaboration on the implementation of a management plan, with the aim of establishing a sustainable protected area integrating local tradition and lifestyle with inimitable biodiversity and habitat.

EWS-WWF and Fujairah Municipality have agreed to continue the successful collaboration to ensure that the existing and future pressures on Wadi Wurayah’s natural resources are managed within an ecologically sustainable framework, maintaining the unique natural biodiversity, involving the local community, and providing planning tools to transform the area into an important eco-tourism area for Fujairah.

As part of the management plan, the municipality will form a committee dedicated to oversee the management of the National Park to enforce best practices and high standards. For example, Wadi Wurayah will be given a protected border with rangers employed to care for the area and its unique biodiversity and habitats. The first ranger has already been employed by the municipality.

Mohamed Saif Al Afkham, Director General at Fujairah Municipality said: “Wadi Wurayah continues to be a stronghold for wildlife in the UAE with the continuous discovery of new species. We believe that this area is of great national importance to the UAE and are dedicated to its on-going protection, whilst allowing the community to gain access to and learn from its natural beauty.”

The wadi is a 129-sq-km catchment that occupies the northern reaches of Fujairah between the towns of Masafi, Khor Fakkan and Bidiyah. In October 2010, it officially joined the list of 1,932 wetlands around the world which are of international importance for biodiversity conservation under the Ramsar Convention. Due to its habitat diversity and the presence of permanent water, Wadi Wurayah is considered a stronghold for the wildlife in UAE.

Ida Tillisch, Acting Director General at EWS-WWF explained, “The signing of the MoU is a great step forward in the on-going protection and preservation of Wadi Wurayah. We are excited to be working in partnership with Fujairah Municipality in putting these plans into action and believe they will help the community better appreciate the area’s natural beauty whilst reaffirming its value.”

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