The EU-funded project "Mediterranean Implementation of the Ecosystem Approach, in Coherence with the EU MSFD" (EcAp MED II), implemented from 2015 until 2019, aimed to assist the Southern Mediterranean Contracting Parties to implement the Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Programme (IMAP), adopted by COP 19 (Decision IG.22/7), as part of the implementation of the Ecosystem Approach Roadmap (Decision IG.17/6).
The project was funded by the European Commission and covered the period of eight semesters from 2015-2019, with a budget of EUR 2,675,000. It built on the achievements of the EU-funded project EcAp-MED I (2012-2015) and benefitted from co-financing from the Mediterranean Trust Fund and other resources.
The project was coordinated by the UNEP/MAP Coordinating Unit, and implemented with the support of several UNEP/MAP components: MED POL, SPA/RAC, PAP/RAC, INFO/RAC and Plan Bleu. The implementation of the pollution component also benefited from contributions from REMPEC.
The project assisted the Southern Mediterranean Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention (Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia) in establishing new updated monitoring programmes in line with the Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Programme. This contributed to enabling (for the first time) the quantitative and integrated monitoring of the status of the Mediterranean Sea and coast on a regional basis, covering all three IMAP clusters, namely biodiversity and non-indigenous species, coast and hydrography, and pollution and marine litter monitoring.
In addition, the project addressed some specific challenges of the Ecosystem Approach implementation, by strengthening the science-policy interface, addressing sub-regional implementation needs, and responding to data and information challenges in the region, including through the establishment of a shared data and information management system, the IMAP Pilot Info System.
The most significant achievements supported through the project included:
- national Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Programmes (IMAP) were developed for the three clusters in Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia;
- national monitoring capacities for all three clusters were strengthened through dedicated national and sub-regional trainings and through guidance developed for the monitoring of common indicators;
- a joint GFCM-UNEP/MAP Sub-Regional Pilot was developed and agreed for the Eastern Mediterranean for the monitoring of Non-Indigenous Fish Species, with the participation of Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Israel, Lebanon and Turkey;
- further collaboration explored with the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) in support of the monitoring and assessment of IMAP Common Indicators related to fisheries;
- regional and sub-regional cooperation and exchange of expertise was strengthened through regular meetings of thematic Ecosystem Approach Correspondence Groups on Monitoring (CORMON) and MAP Component focal points, the Regional Meeting on IMAP Implementation: Best Practices, Gaps and Common Challenges (Rome, Italy, 10-12 July 2018) and Meetings of the Ecosystem Approach (EcAp) Coordination Group. Such an exchange of best practices and lessons learned on IMAP implementation by all Contracting Parties contributed to enhancing synergies and harmonization to the extent possible of the work undertaken at regional level for IMAP implementation with the work undertaken under EU MSFD, ensuring mutual benefits;
- the Science-Policy Interface for EcAp and IMAP implementation was enhanced through regional workshops, with specific recommendations developed to support the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention;
- a Pilot data management system, the IMAP Pilot Info System, was developed and made operational, allowing countries to report data for 11 common indicators, with the support of relevant guidance documents, data standards and data dictionaries;
- a Roadmap for the preparation of the UNEP/MAP data management policy was developed together with first elements for a specific IMAP data policy, and was endorsed at the 21st Ordinary Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention (COP 21, Naples, Italy, 2-5 December 2019);
- the 2017 Mediterranean Quality Status Report was produced and endorsed at the 20th Ordinary Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention (COP 20, Tirana, Albania, 17-20 December 2017), as the first regional assessment report based on IMAP common indicators, providing a baseline to define the progress towards the Good Environmental Status of the Mediterranean Sea and Coast and identifying key knowledge gaps; the 2023 Mediterranean Quality Status Report will seek to address these gaps, building on the results of the project and activities defined in the roadmap for the preparation of 2023 MED QSR that was adopted by COP 21 in December 2019;
- a Roadmap and Terms of Reference were developed for further collaboration with the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) for data and information management; its implementation will support the monitoring and assessment of IMAP Common Indicators and their further development related to fisheries;
- a Funding Strategy for the implementation of the Ecosystem Approach in the Mediterranean was developed, with a special emphasis on the implementation needs of the Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Programme in the Southern Mediterranean.
A more detailed list of project deliverables with links to related documents is available here: EcAp MED II Project deliverables
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