The State Audit Office of Hungary (SAO) audited the restoration, protection, and sustainable management of wetlands, which are crucial for maintaining biodiversity, conserving water resources, and mitigating the effects of climate change, including the coherence and effectiveness of national and sectoral strategies, programs, and resources, as well as the functioning of governance, data collection, monitoring, and decision-support systems.
Wetlands are among the most endangered habitat types worldwide, and in Hungary as well. Wetlands not only contribute to the conservation of biodiversity by providing a home for numerous animal and plant species, but also play a role in climate regulation, the sustainability of water resources, and the preservation of soil quality. 21.4% of Hungary is protected under the Natura 2000 ecological network; 18.9% of these areas are wetland habitats, covering approximately 4% of the country’s total land area. There are 29 sites in Hungary that fall under the Ramsar Convention.
The SAO’s audit, covering the period from 2020 to November 2025, found that the measures taken to protect and manage wetlands, as well as nature conservation developments, were implemented during the audited period in accordance with national and EU objectives and with due regard for the long-term sustainability of natural assets. Through their nature conservation activities, national park directorates were able to respond effectively to the dual challenges of adapting to the effects of climate change and building resilience to them, primarily depending on EU funding. Their completed projects were funded through direct and indirect EU grant funds, with a total of nearly 12 billion HUF disbursed during the audited period. Since EU funds mainly supported the implementation of specific individual projects, they did not allow for long-term planning regarding the ongoing protection, restoration, and development of wetlands, and therefore could not contribute to long-term sustainability.
In the opinion of the SAO, water retention and the restoration of natural wetlands should not be based on isolated, stand-alone interventions. A key factor is strategic landscape planning that, in addition to terrestrial systems, prioritizes the inclusion of wetlands in planning and considers their long-term conservation a priority. Wetlands must be recognized as key components of the landscape in strategic landscape planning, as they ensure the maintenance of natural water balance, the conservation of biodiversity, the foundation for climate adaptation, and the provision of important ecosystem services. Landscape planning based on this approach not only enhances the efficiency of current water retention programs but also ensures, in the long term, that the conservation and restoration of wetlands are not merely a series of projects but a fundamental principle of sustainable land use.
Certain objectives and measures related to the importance of wetland conservation have been addressed separately in various sectoral and horizontal strategic documents. These documents have addressed wetland protection with varying degrees of depth and content. While the strategies recognized the need for cross-sectoral coordination, in practice, cooperation among sectoral actors operated along separate lines of responsibility rather than as a unified system grounded in technical, ecological, and landscape management principles. One of the factors that made a unified approach difficult was the fact that, under Hungarian law and in water-related management practices, there is no universally accepted, precisely defined definition of the term “wetland.”
During the audit period, there was a lack of systematic, consistent data collection and monitoring activities, which poses a risk, beyond the audit period, to the achievement of the national objective of restoring degraded ecosystems, such as wetlands.
Studies, impact assessments, cost-benefit analyses, and risk assessments were available on an ad hoc basis for sectoral decisions. During the audited period, the systematic use of research and innovation results in decision-making processes was not achieved.
Regulations and strategies related to nature conservation and environmental protection have placed a strong emphasis on fostering environmental awareness in society. According to the SAO’s assessment, the audited organisations have effectively contributed to shaping attitudes toward nature conservation and environmental issues among all age groups of the population.
Based on the findings of the audit, the SAO made three recommendations to the minister responsible for nature conservation regarding strategic landscape planning, the operation of databases, and the possible applications of cost-benefit analyses. The SAO also made this last recommendation to the minister responsible for environmental protection.
The full report in Hungarian is available here.