| Description |
Montecristo National Park, perched in the northwest corner of El Salvador, protects 1,973 hectares (4,875 acres) of tropical humid and cloud forest, rising from 750 meters (2,461 feet) to 2,418 meters (7,933 feet) above sea level. It is vital for local water supplies, with five rivers beginning within its borders, and it forms part of the Fraternidad Reserve, also known as El Trifinio, which links parks in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. Its forests safeguard a great diversity of flora and fauna, and one sector of the park holds a colonial hacienda more than 200 years old.
This Park is considered El Salvador’s “Flagship Park,” and is at present the only national park managed exclusively by Government of El Salvador. This protected nature area contains a colonial-era farmhouse, declared a National Monument and part of the nation’s cultural patrimony by the National Council on Culture and Arts (CONCULTURA). Its ecosystems are unique to El Salvador and it possesses a tremendous diversity of endemic species, identifying it as one of the most important areas in Central America constituting the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor. The ecosystem of Pino Roble and Bosque Nebuloso is shared with Guatemala and Honduras, as is the bordering binational buffer zone, Lago de Guija, and the Bosque Tropical Seco of the San Diego La Barra National Park, all comprising the Trifinio Conservation Area. All these special features make the area an icon of Central American environmental integration, the object of treaties and policies among the three countries. In 2003, a strategic management plan (Strategy) was formulated as a basic planning tool for any action that might be implemented, and personnel were identified to maintain and protect the nature area.
The IMCCW project, under the technical direction of the National Park Manager/Team Leader will implement the three primary components of the ‘Strategy’ for improved park management and sustainability, which are as follows:
1) Strengthen park administration and financial systems,
2) Improve visitation experiences, and
3) Improve working relationships with local communities.
The contractor will provide technical assistance to a variety of thematic areas on park management, will conduct a number of trainings, generate deliverables such as plans, workplans and brochures, work closely with the local communities, design and build visitor and interpretative infrastructure, purchase necessary equipment, and conduct several in-depth assessments of specific issues/challenges.
| | Basic Qualifications: | | The ideal candidate must have an appropriate background education in environmental sciences (preferably a M.Sc. degree) and / or possess at least 15 years of proven experience in the development and sustainable management of protected areas and parks and business administration. Excellent Spanish required. |
|
