In 2024, the Hungarian national park directorates and state nature conservation made a lot of progress. Thanks to the operational programs of the recently concluded seven-year EU financial period, 109 conservation projects were implemented nationwide, and the condition of our natural environment was improved on approximately 180,000 hectares with a total value of nearly HUF 42 billion.
As well as protecting species and habitats, and managing conservation areas, national park directorates in Hungary are now being asked to get society more involved in nature conservation education. In our country, half of the roughly 700 registered ecotourism facilities are now run by one of the 10 national park directorates, which receive around 1.6 million registered visitors a year. The directorates are doing a great job of meeting the growing social and professional interest by rolling out new developments.
One of the most spectacular tourism investments of the year was realized in Hortobágy. As part of the project entitled “Hortobágy – Our World Heritage, the ”Puszta”, funded by the European Union, the Shepherds’ Museum, the Körszín, and the Hortobágy Tavern complex have been renovated, and the supplementary works of the visitor center and the establishment of the local market space have also been completed. The total value of the project was nearly HUF 3 billion.
The Kiskunság National Park Directorate has inaugurated its much-needed information center called Puszta Kapuja, in Bugac. The new facility provides information about the Natura 2000 network and habitats for the local population, local farmers, and visitors to the region. The development was realized with nearly HUF 300 million.
Back in 2024, we also opened a new building for our country’s largest gene bank in Tápiószele. It used the latest tech and cost almost one billion forints. The new plant gene bank’s building and infrastructure put our institution among the top twenty in the world. The two new cold storage facilities make sure the seed samples stored here will be kept for at least 100 years.
We also inaugurated a new Hungarian geopark in 2024, when the Bükk-vidék Geopark received the UNESCO Global Geopark title. This means we now have three internationally recognized geoparks, along with the Novohrad-Nógrád and Bakony-Balaton geoparks. From 2024, the Bükk-vidék Geopark will also be helping to look after and showcase Hungary’s geoscientific and cultural heritage.
Conservation of wetlands was a big priority in 2024 too.The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, which aims to protect wetland habitats, gave the city of Tata the title of “Ramsar City” in 2018. There are only 43 other cities with this title worldwide. Tata has also been chosen to host the Ramsar Cities World Conference in 2025. The event will take place in November 2025, along with the Tata Wild Goose Festival.
Source: Press Office of the Ministry of Agriculture
