Since the great drought of the 1980s, the degradation of the natural environment has taken on a worrying scale that still persists today and whose obvious consequences are the regression of biological diversity. Benin in general and its southern part in particular is no exception to this phenomenon of deterioration. Wetlands, ecosystems with significant resources, are concentrated in southern Benin. Southern Benin is home to more than 50% of the Beninese population (with densities rarely less than 150
inhabitants per km²) on 10% of the surface of the national territory (da Matha Sant'Anna, 2001). This situation justifies that the surrounding ecosystems are under anthropogenic pressure that does not guarantee the sustainability of the resources that compose them. In the context of the preservation of its biological resources, the Republic of Benin has adhered to several international Conventions, including those specific to this study, the CBD, the CMS and the RAMSAR Convention. For this purpose, two sites (1017 & 1018) have already been included on the list of wetlands of international importance or Ramsar List. These are the East Complex and the West Complex, both located in the southern part of Benin. The Ouémé Valley and the Mono Valley are respectively an important component of the East Complex and the West complex. In addition, several studies report the anthropogenic pressure on natural biological resources in general and many testimonies point to increased hunting and major massacres on the last populations of the manatee in West Africa. To have ratified the Ramsar Convention, Benin has obligations to meet. It has the duty to ensure that the ecological characteristics of each registered site are maintained. In addition, he is in charge of promoting the use of wetlands through national development plans and the creation of nature reserves in registered or non-registered sites. The pace of ecosystem degradation and the poaching of the manatee population is far from satisfying the principle of sustainable use. It is in order to contribute to the rational management of these resources that this strategy paper is prepared in order to rethink and develop new actions aimed at meeting the expectations of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance.