Evaluation of management effectiveness in protected areas in northeast Ecuador

Abstract

The Management Effectiveness Evaluation (MEA) is a fundamental tool for planning and managing protected areas worldwide. It provides necessary information on the state of resources, threats and opportunities, allowing you to improve your planning strategies and make them more efficient. The objective of this study is to evaluate and describe the protected areas of northeastern Ecuador, through an analysis of strengths and weaknesses, to determine their management effectiveness. The methodology used was based on the application of 44 questions formulated, depending on environmental and socioeconomic characteristics. These questions were classified into seven programs: personnel, administration, planning, control and surveillance, communication, environmental education and participation, public use and tourism, and biodiversity management. The most relevant results obtained were the average threat level in the Cuyabeno Fauna Production Reserve and the Cofán Bermejo Ecological Reserve, while in the other protected areas the threat level is low. The management effectiveness of the six protected areas studied is in a satisfactory range of scores. It can be concluded that Yasuní National Park is the best managed, with a percentage of 66.09%, which means that its management effectiveness is satisfactory.