Good governance of protected areas

A protected area is a clearly defined geographical space designated for the conservation of nature and is significant as a habitat for numerous species of plant and animal life. This type of area is defined and regulated by the Law on Nature Protection, which is the fundamental legal act that prescribes provisions for the protection of natural values in Serbia.

Protected areas are classified into 7 types: Strict Nature Reserve (Kukavica), Special Nature Reserve (Uvac, Suva planina, etc.), National Parks (Đerdap, Tara, etc.), Monuments of Nature (Đavolja varoš, Lazarev kanjon, etc.), Protected Habitats (Mali vršački rit, Pančevačke ade, etc.), Outstanding Natural Landscapes (Veliko ratno ostrvo, Kosmaj, etc.), and Nature Park (Zlatibor, Sićevačka klisura, etc.).

In order to preserve and protect nature in the long term, as well as enhance natural values and ecosystems, it is necessary to have good and efficient management of protected areas, which will be carried out by managers in accordance with regulations and rules at the national level.

However, managers and actors who participate in the management process often lack the skills and competencies needed to carry out management at the highest level for the protection and preservation of nature.

One of the goals of the "Together for the Environment in Serbia" project is to improve the capacity for managing protected areas.

Within the project, we will analyze the system of management of protected areas in Serbia together and examine what capacities, knowledge, and practices are lacking for managers of these areas.

Through various training programs, mentoring, expert, financial support, and knowledge exchange, and relying on the best global practices, we will improve the skills and enhance the capacities of managers of protected areas and other actors in nature conservation.

We will support managers in collaboration with local communities through user advice in order to improve the way of managing protected areas and transparency.

The main focus is to raise the individual as well as institutional capacities of key actors in this area, which actually strengthens the national system of protected areas in the long term and enables growth and sustainability at the community level.