“Effective cooperation” that was the overall theme of the visit to Calakmul on May 20 and 21 of Ms. Metzger, Director of the Division Regional Development Policy, Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico of the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation And Development (BMZ) of Germany.

With the joint objective of promoting the conservation of its ecosystems and sustainable development of the Selva Maya, the German Cooperation supports the responsible authorities in Belize, Guatemala and Mexico through three complementary regional projects:

• Conservation and Sustainable use of the Selva Maya (BMZ, GIZ, 2011-2019)
• Support for the monitoring of biodiversity and climate change in the Selva Maya (BMUB, GIZ, 2016-2021)
• Protection of the Selva Maya Natural Resources (BMZ, KfW/IUCN, 2016-2021)

Key approaches to foster the conservation of the ecosystems are effective protected area and land management as well as sustainable resource use, awareness of the local population and their participation in decision making. And in the particular case of the Selva Maya: promoting and ensuring cross border cooperation and management. How to achieve this, using the opportunities and addressing the challenges, was the focus of the visit.

To see an example of participation and sustainable use of natural resources, the delegation participated in the extraordinary session of the Municipal Council for Sustainable Rural Development, where the validation of the results of the first round of certification of the Sello Colectivo Calakmul was carried out. In addition, the delegation and key actors engaged in discussions on effective cooperation in the region.

There may not be solutions to all the challenges, but the relevant actors are very motivated to achieve results for the current and future populations of the Selva Maya.