Celebrated every year on 2 February, World Wetlands Day (WWD) marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the same day in 1971. The theme for 2020 WWD is “Wetlands and Biodiversity”.

Wetlands are one of our most precious resources providing people and societies with many important benefits such as improved water quality, flood control, and recreational opportunities. Wetlands are also rich with biodiversity and are a habitat for a dense variety of plant and animal species, yet wetlands are disappearing three times faster than forests and globally we are witnessing a decline in biodiversity.

Better information on wetland status and trends are paramount to preserve and reverse the ongoing loss of wetlands. The GlobWetland Africa project continue to assist wetland managers and practitioners with data, tools and information that is needed to make informed decision for wetland conservation and restoration.

You can learn more about the wealth of information found in a single satellite image acquired over the Lake George Ramsar site in Uganda: https://earth.esa.int/web/guest/featured-image/-/article/lake-george-uganda