The 3rd Advisory Committee meeting, organised by MedPAN, was held in Malaga, Spain, on 17 May. The main MedPAN regional partners gathered in order to discuss and provide recommendations on current and further strategic plans and actions of the MedPAN network. To that end, particular emphasis has been given to implementation and promotion of the Antalya MPA Forum roadmap, establishment of the regional MPA trust fund, capacity building strategies and studies on socio-economic value of MPAs.
PAP/RAC contributed to all discussion topics highlighting that the Mediterranean coastal and marine protected areas very often include areas where a diversity of incompatible activities compete for a limited space and resources and therefore their management should be placed into a wider spatial development framework such as ICZM and Ecosystem Based Approach. Moreover, all partners agreed that PAP/RAC as a lead centre for the promotion of ICZM in the Mediterranean unequivocally would play an important role in further promotion and successful implementation of the Antalya Declaration.
At the end of the meeting, the Advisory Committee proposed the next meeting for June in order to specify particular contribution roles of each regional partner towards establishment of the Mediterranean MPA trust fund.
