{"id":12477,"date":"2026-04-06T09:05:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T14:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/?p=12477"},"modified":"2026-04-04T08:38:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T13:38:00","slug":"panama-city-begins-process-to-become-accredited-wetland-city","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/politics-government\/panama-city-begins-process-to-become-accredited-wetland-city\/","title":{"rendered":"Panama City Begins Process to Become Accredited Wetland City"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Mayor’s Office of Panama City has formally initiated its application to become an accredited Wetland City under the international Ramsar Convention<\/a>. This effort, coordinated with Panama’s Ministry of Environment, aims to secure the designation ahead of the Conference of the Parties (COP16)<\/a> in 2028. The accreditation would recognize the capital’s commitment to integrating urban wetlands into its sustainable development planning.<\/p>\n

City and national environmental officials have already held a series of foundational meetings to establish a joint roadmap. Their goal is to systematically build a case that Panama City meets the rigorous global standards for wetland conservation within an urban setting.<\/p>\n

\"panama
by mupa.gob.pa<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Building an Inter-Institutional Framework<\/h2>\n

A technical working group is now being formed to manage the detailed application process. Initial meetings included key personnel from both the municipality and the national government. Representatives from the Ministry of Environment included Jorge Ja\u00e9n, Kira Sandoval, and Quiriatjaryn Ortega.<\/p>\n

The municipal delegation featured Sebastian Otway, Director of the International Cooperation Office, along with specialists Felipa Saavedra, Facundo Clua, and Yarelys G\u00f3mez. Their collaborative work focuses on aligning local policies with the international criteria required for the Wetland City Accreditation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

These teams are meticulously reviewing the Ramsar Convention’s requirements. The accreditation specifically honors local governments that successfully weave wetland conservation into the fabric of their urban planning and sustainable development policies.<\/p>\n

“Seeking this accreditation reflects our commitment to a more sustainable, resilient city that respects its natural heritage,” stated a release from the Mayor’s Office of Panama. [Translated from Spanish] The statement further emphasized promoting actions that harmonize urban growth with the conservation of the ecosystems surrounding the capital.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Officials argue that achieving this status would solidify Panama’s role as a regional leader in environmental sustainability. It positions the capital district as a potential model for coastal ecosystem conservation and urban climate resilience.<\/p>\n

A Path Toward International Recognition<\/h2>\n

The push for accreditation is not an isolated project. It connects directly to broader national and municipal strategies for climate adaptation. Urban wetlands, including mangroves and estuaries, provide critical buffers against storm surges and flooding. They also offer significant biodiversity benefits within the metropolitan area.<\/p>\n

Successfully navigating the application process to<\/a> accreditation requires demonstrating tangible conservation outcomes and long-term management commitments. The city must prove its existing efforts and future plans protect these vital ecosystems from urban pressure.<\/p>\n

With COP16 several years away, Panama City has a clear timeline to prepare its submission. The ongoing formation of the technical mesa, or table, is the first concrete step in a multi-year effort. This inter-institutional body will define specific work lines and coordination protocols.<\/p>\n

Final accreditation would place Panama City among a select group of global urban centers recognized for their proactive wetland stewardship. The city’s journey toward this goal has now officially begun.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Mayor’s Office of Panama City has formally initiated its application to become an accredited Wetland City under the international Ramsar Convention. This effort, coordinated with Panama’s Ministry of Environment, aims to secure the designation ahead of the Conference of the Parties (COP16) in 2028. The accreditation would recognize the capital’s commitment to integrating urban<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12475,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[29,32],"tags":[3595,215,3594,385],"class_list":{"0":"post-12477","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-politics-government","8":"category-environment","9":"tag-accredited-wetland-city","10":"tag-panama-city","11":"tag-ramsar-convention","12":"tag-wetland-conservation"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12477","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12477"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12477\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12478,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12477\/revisions\/12478"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12475"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}