A quarter century of

The WWF-Mondi Wetlands Programme (WWF-MWP), established in 1991, has spent 25 years catalysing wetland conservation in South Africa. The programme evolved from a local project in KwaZulu-Natal to a national initiative, and eventually part of a global partnership between WWF and Mondi. Key achievements include the development of a scientifically defensible wetland delineation method adopted by the forestry industry and government, the creation of the SUSFARMS® sustainable sugarcane management system, and the catalysing of the state-run Working for Wetlands programme. The programme has shifted its focus from specific wetland sites to a broader 'landscape approach' to water stewardship, engaging dairy, sugar, and forestry sectors to improve water security and ecosystem resilience.

• The WWF-MWP played a catalytic role in the establishment of the government-led Working for Wetlands programme in 2000, which has since received over R1 billion in funding and provides approximately 2,400 annual job opportunities for previously unemployed people.
• The programme helped develop a practical, scientifically defensible wetland delineation method based on hydromorphic soils and hydrophytic vegetation, which was adopted by Forestry South Africa (FSA) and government departments to establish buffer zones and remove commercial trees from wetlands.
• The WWF-MWP collaborated with the sugar industry in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands to create SUSFARMS® (Sustainable Sugarcane Farm Management System®), a tool used by about 350 commercial farmers to implement environmentally and socially responsible agricultural practices.
• The programme's lobbying efforts contributed to the inclusion of a tight, legally defensible regulatory definition of 'wetland' in the National Water Act of 1998 and the revised Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act (CARA) Regulations of 2001.
• The WWF-MWP developed several technical tools for wetland management, including the WET-Series (comprising 11 volumes), WET-EcoServices for assessing ecosystem services, and WET-Health for evaluating wetland health and trajectories.
• The programme has transitioned toward a 'landscape approach' to water stewardship, which focuses on working with all adjacent land users in a catchment—including dairy and forestry sectors—rather than treating individual pieces of land in isolation.
• The WWF-MWP supported the Ntsikeni wetland in southern KwaZulu-Natal through health assessments and rehabilitation, contributing to its successful application for Ramsar Wetland Site status in 2010.
• In 2014, the partnership expanded into a global agreement between WWF and Mondi, focusing on ecosystem, manufacturing, and product stewardship across South Africa, Europe, and Russia.

APA

WWF South Africa (2016). A quarter century of. https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/wwf_mondi_report_final_web.pdf

Chicago

WWF South Africa. A quarter century of. 2016. https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/wwf_mondi_report_final_web.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=WWF South Africa |title=A quarter century of |date=October 2016 |url=https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/wwf_mondi_report_final_web.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wwfsouthafrica2016quarter, author = {{WWF South Africa}}, title = {{A quarter century of}}, institution = {WWF South Africa}, year = {2016}, month = oct, url = {https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/wwf_mondi_report_final_web.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }