World Wetlands Day is celebrated on February 2, in commemoration of the signing of the Convention on Wetlands, held in the Iranian city of Ramsar, on February 2, 1971. This is the first agreement concerning the conservation and rational use of wetlands.
Since 1997, all official bodies, non-governmental organizations and citizen groups from all levels of the community have taken advantage of this opportunity to raise people's awareness of the values of these ecosystems and their benefits.
Ramsar Convention
The Ramsar list includes 2293 wetlands from 169 countries, with an area of 225 418 823 hectares. The types of wetlands included in the Ramsar list are: natural areas of wet grasslands, peat bogs, swamps, marshes, lakes, rivers, estuaries, deltas, low tides, coastal marine areas, mangroves, coral reefs, water eyes and artificial sites such as fish ponds, rice fields, reservoirs and salt mines.
The Standing Committee of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands approved for 2018 the theme: ''Wetlands for a sustainable urban future'', dedicated to the importance of these areas for cities, given the crucial role of wetlands in the current welfare and future of humanity and thus promote its rational use.
Cuba and the Ramsar Convention
Cuba is part of the Ramsar Convention since 2001. It has 6 Ramsar sites and 30 percent of the Cuban protected areas are wetlands. The Cuban Ramsar sites are: La Ciénaga de Zapata, in Matanzas; Delta del Cauto, in Granma; Gran Humedal del Norte, in Ciego de Ávila; Río Máximo- Camagüey, in Camagüey province; Ciénaga de Lanier and south of the Isla de la Juventud.
There are two new Cuban proposals to be included in the list as well, these are the Guanahacabibes Wetland and the South Wetland of Los Palacios, both in the province of Pinar del Río.
Importance of wetlands
Wetlands are ecosystems with great biological diversity, regulators of the water cycle in nature, floods, droughts and climate in general. They also generate water resources for the supply of fresh water, are a refuge for wildlife and constitute areas for human activities such as tourism and fishing.