Management effectiveness and conservation prioritizing the protected areas using RAPPAM methodology (case study: Khuzestan province)

In the world today, where the industrialization of countries is still on the increase, protecting habitats and wildlife will be possible only in protected areas. That is why maintaining species' diversity and preventing the destruction of habitats in protected areas has been of great interest. Rapid Assessment and Prioritization of Protected Area Management methodology is one of the most common methods of management effectiveness assessment and is used as a tool for managers and decision-makers of protected areas. Recently, the biodiversity and sustainability of wildlife populations, as well as preserving the integrity of protected areas in the Khuzestan province, have been at risk due to several factors; therefore, the evaluation of management effectiveness in these areas is necessary. The studied areas in this research are protected areas in Khuzestan province, with a history of more than 5years of management. The results of this study show that Dez, a protected area with the highest points in the planning (38.5), has the highest score in management effectiveness (128.78). Also, Shimbar, a protected area with the lowest score (11), has the lowest score of management effectiveness (64.66) among the other areas. The overall management level of the protected areas in the Khuzestan province is at the low-intermediate managerial level compared to the global average. Therefore, it is necessary to change the policies and management of these areas.