# Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds

The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds, or African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) is an independent international treaty developed under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme's Convention on Migratory Species.

## Background

The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds was drafted on 19 June 1995 in The Hague, Netherlands, in order to coordinate efforts to conserve bird species migrating between European and African nations.

## Description

The AEWA is an independent treaty under the auspices of the Convention on Migratory Species, of the United Nations Environment Programme.
The agreement focuses on bird species that depend on wetlands for at least part of their lifecycle and cross international borders in their migration patterns. As of 2023 it covered 255 species.
As of July 2023, its scope covered territories in 119 Range States stretching from the Arctic to South Africa, encompassing the Canadian archipelago and the Middle East as well as Europe and Africa.

## Parties

Parties to AEWA :
| Region | Party Name | Date in Force |
| Africa | Egypt | 1999-01-01 |
| Africa | Niger | 1999-01-01 |
| Africa | Congo | 1999-11-01 |
| Africa | Gambia | 1999-11-01 |
| Africa | Guinea | 1999-11-01 |
| Africa | Senegal | 1999-11-01 |
| Africa | Sudan | 1999-11-01 |
| Africa | Tanzania | 1999-11-01 |
| Africa | Togo | 1999-11-01 |
| Eurasia | Germany | 1999-11-01 |
| Eurasia | Jordan | 1999-11-01 |
| Eurasia | Monaco | 1999-11-01 |
| Eurasia | Netherlands | 1999-11-01 |
| Eurasia | Spain | 1999-11-01 |
| Eurasia | Sweden | 1999-11-01 |
| Eurasia | Switzerland | 1999-11-01 |
| Eurasia | United Kingdom | 1999-11-01 |
| Africa | Benin | 2000-1-01 |
| Africa | Mali | 2000-1-01 |
| Eurasia | Denmark | 2000-1-01 |
| Eurasia | Finland | 2000-1-01 |
| Eurasia | Bulgaria | 2000-2-01 |
| Eurasia | Macedonia | 2000-2-01 |
| Eurasia | Croatia | 2000-9-01 |
| Eurasia | Romania | 2000-10-01 |
| Africa | Uganda | 2000-12-01 |
| Africa | Mauritius | 2001-1-01 |
| Eurasia | Moldova | 2001-4-01 |
| Africa | Kenya | 2001-6-01 |
| Eurasia | Slovakia | 2001-7-01 |
| Eurasia | Georgia | 2001-8-01 |
| Eurasia | Albania | 2001-9-01 |
| Africa | South Africa | 2002-4-01 |
| Eurasia | Israel | 2002-11-01 |
| Eurasia | Lebanon | 2002-12-01 |
| Africa | Equatorial Guinea | 2003-1-01 |
| Eurasia | Ukraine | 2003-1-01 |
| Eurasia | Hungary | 2003-3-01 |
| Eurasia | Ireland | 2003-8-01 |
| Eurasia | Syria | 2003-8-01 |
| Eurasia | Slovenia | 2003-10-01 |
| Eurasia | France | 2003-12-01 |
| Eurasia | Luxembourg | 2003-12-01 |
| Africa | Djibouti | 2004-3-01 |
| Eurasia | Portugal | 2004-3-01 |
| Eurasia | Uzbekistan | 2004-4-01 |
| Africa | Nigeria | 2004-7-01 |
| Eurasia | Lithuania | 2004-11-01 |
| Africa | Libya | 2005-6-01 |
| Africa | Tunisia | 2005-7-01 |
| Africa | Ghana | 2005-10-01 |
| Eurasia | European Union | 2005-10-01 |
| Eurasia | Latvia | 2006-1-01 |
| Eurasia | Belgium | 2006-6-01 |
| Eurasia | Czech Republic | 2006-6-23 |
| Eurasia | Italy | 2006-9-01 |
| Africa | Algeria | 2006-10-01 |
| Africa | Guinea-Bissau | 2006-11-01 |
| Africa | Madagascar | 2007-1-01 |
| Eurasia | Cyprus | 2008-9-01 |
| Eurasia | Norway | 2008-9-01 |
| Eurasia | Estonia | 2008-11-01 |
| Africa | Ethiopia | 2010-2-01 |
| Africa | Chad | 2011-11-01 |
| Eurasia | Montenegro | 2011-11-01 |
| Africa | Zimbabwe | 2012-06-01 |
| Africa | Gabon | 2012-12-01 |
| Africa | Morocco | 2012-12-01 |
| Africa | eSwatini | 2013-01-01 |
| Africa | Côte d'Ivoire | 2013-06-01 |
| Eurasia | Iceland | 2013-06-01 |
| Africa | Burkina Faso | 2013-10-01 |
| Africa | Rwanda | 2014-09-01 |
| Africa | Burundi | 2014-10-01 |
| Africa | Mauritania | 2015-05-01 |
| Eurasia | Belarus | 2016-04-01 |
| Africa | Botswana | 2017-11-01 |
| Africa | Central African Republic | 2019-01-01 |

## Meetings

The parties meet every few years. As of the end of 2024, there have been eight Meetings of Parties (MoPs):
* 7–9 November 1999 in Cape Town, South Africa
* 25–27 September 2002 in Bonn, Germany
* 23–27 October 2005 in Dakar, Senegal
* 15–19 September 2008 in Antananarivo, Madagascar
* 14–18 May 2012 in La Rochelle, France
* 9–14 November 2015 in Bonn, Germany
* 4–8 December 2018 in Durban, South Africa
* 26-30 September 2022 in Budapest, Hungary

## Treaties
### Ban on lead shot

The use of lead shot over wetlands has been banned by the signatories to the convention on account of the poisoning it causes.