Recalling that the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) is included in both Appendix I and II of CMS, thus highlighting the need for concerted action and international cooperation among the range states and noting the important ecological role the monk seal plays, an Article IV agreement was signed in Adeje, Tenerife, Spain on 18 October 2007, in the margins of the CMS meeting on Western African Talks on Cetaceans and their Habitats (WATCH) and came into effect immediately.

The isolation of the small remaining populations – experts believe that the two colonies (one on Madeira and the other on the Cabo Blanco peninsula) do not interbreed – means that the species’ survival is precariously balanced.

It lays down the procedures to implement coordinated actions among the signatories, providing a means to combine programmes initiated by different national, local and private organizations.

One of the major features of the plan is the proposal to create a network of Special Areas of Conservation for the Monk Seal (SACMS) to help restore populations.Foca monje del Mediterráneo A Monk Seal Working Group composed of representatives of the four signatory states has been operational since the inception of the MoU and oversees and guides activities undertaken under the MoU and Action Plan.

A meeting of the Working Group in Mauritania in November 2009 agreed some necessary actions, including the identification of relevant competent authorities for the implementation of the MoU, sources of technical advice and options for funding.

Furthermore, the establishment of a no-fishing zone and the elimination of disturbances in the vicinity of breeding grounds have helped raise the number of monk seals in the Cabo Blanco Peninsula from 100 to 200 in the 1997-2009 period.