2.3 S TATUS OF WETLANDS IUCN has worked with the GoL on the process of accession to the Ramsar Convention since 2003. Upon joining the Ramsar Convention on 28 September 2010, the GoL had designated the country’s first two wetlands of national significance, the Xe Champhone and Beung Kiat Ngong Wetlands. The commitment from the GoL to protect its vital natural wetland resources comes at a crucial point in the nation’s rapid and transformative economic development. Both the Xe Champhone and Beung Kiat Ngong Wetlands are ecologically significant areas and make vastly important contributions to sustaining the livelihoods of people who live in and around them.
The Xe Champhone Wetlands comprise a large floodplain which nourishes perennial rivers and a wide variety of scattered lakes and ponds. The wetlands provide important food, and support the livelihoods for the approximately 20,000 people who live in and around the site (see figure: 5). Thousands of cattle are also raised in the area and the wetlands have become increasingly critical to both people and livestock during the dry season. Of the many lakes and ponds, some form habitat for the critically endangered Siamese crocodiles ( Crocodylus siamensis) , and are home to several species of turtles. Figure 5 : Xe Champhone Ramsar Site 13