Projects underway in the Eastern African Marine Ecoregion
Marine and Coastal Environment Management Project
The Marine and Coastal Environment Management Project (MACEMP) is a 6-year project for the United Republic of Tanzania with a focus on the sustainable management and utilisation of the coastal and marine resources. MACEMP is supporting marine and near-shore policy reforms and implementation of activities that impact positively on the quality of life of populations in coastal areas, and also on the integrity of the off-shore resource base that is of national, and international, significance. The project emphasizes the establishment of an effective regulatory and institutional framework, participatory planning and the creation of an enabling environment for integrated coastal and marine resources management and private investment at a coastal area.
The project also support activities aimed at improving scientific understanding of marine and coastal resources, including the major threats facing them. The project activities have been designed to assist the Government in implementing the National Integrated Coastal Environment Management Strategy, the National Fisheries Master Plan, and the Fisheries Act, Marine Parks and Reserves Act.
The project development objective is: to strengthen the sustainable management and use of the Exclusive Economic Zone, territorial seas, and coastal resources resulting in enhanced revenue collection, reduced threats to the environment, better livelihoods for participating coastal communities living in the coastal districts, and improved institutional arrangements.
The project is implemented through four components, which are aimed at achieving the above outcomes. The components are (a) Sound Management of the Exclusive Economic Zone, (b) Sound Management of Coastal Marine Environment, (c) Coastal Community Action Fund, and (d) Project Implementation Support.
For more detailed information about MACEMP click here
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Integrated Coastal Management
Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) is a continuous and dynamic process that unites governments and communities, sciences and management and sectoral and pubic interests in preparing and implementing integrated plans for the protection and development of coastal ecosystems and resources.
Tanzania has been in the forefront within the EAME area in the adoption and implementation of ICM principles. This is a result of substantial experience and long standing political commitment to making ICM a reality. Tanzania has developed an Integrated Coastal Environment Management Strategy.
For more information on the Tanzania Coastal Management Partnership click here.
For more information of the National Environment Management Council click here.
Mozambique is the second country to adopt and implement the ICM principles in EAME. Mozambique is in the process of finalising the Integrated Coastal Management Strategy. For more information contact the Director General or the Director, Ministry for Coordination of Environmental Affairs.
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Climate Change
WWF - EAME is testing its approach to build resilience with Global Environment Facility (GEF) and partner co-financing in tropical mangrove areas of high biodiversity importance. The current project was launched in 2005 and is being implemented in Mafia Kilwa and Rufiji as part of a global program being implemented in four countries including Tanzania, Cameroon, Fiji and India. The project aims at building the capacity of natural resource managers to assess vulnerability and to adapt management strategies to respond to expected impacts of climate change. The initial vulnerability assessments and adaptation planning for mangrove protection include reforestation with “climate-smart species”, integrated land-use and marine planning as well as adoption of improved resource use technologies.
The project results will be disseminated for replication of the climate change adaptation approaches to other areas in Tanzania and around the world. The work is being carried out with diverse groups of conservation partners including government, academic, non-Government Organizations, Private sector and community representative to integratep climate change adaptation strategies into their management philosophies and plans.
For more information click here to visit WWF International
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Rufiji, Mafia and Kilwa (RUMAKI) Seascape
One of a newer generation of WWF projects based on an integrated, people-oriented approach to sustainable natural resources management and biodiversity conservation. The ‘seascape’ concept mirrors the terrestrial ‘landscape’ approach and recognizes the need to look beyond protected areas to the wider geographic, social and economic context. It takes as its starting point the fundamental links between environment and poverty and between biodiversity conservation and sustainable livelihood development.
The project area, at approximately 9,000 square km, has a human population of around 140,000 and includes the largest contiguous block of mangrove forest (Rufiji) on the Eastern African seaboard, extensive coral reef areas and important prawn, finfish and invertebrate fisheries. These habitats harbour the equal highest levels of coral and fish biodiversity in the region, important sea turtle nesting sites and the only remaining dugong refuge in Tanzania. The area is one of the eight high priority ‘seascapes’ of the EAME Programme.
The main goal is improved socio-economic well-being of coastal communities in Rufiji, Mafia and Kilwa districts through sustainable, participatory and equitable use and protection of the marine and coastal natural resources.
For more information click here to visit WWF International
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Pemba Channel Conservation Area
The Department of Fisheries of Zanzibar has identified one new protected area for critical habitat which is known as Pemba Channel Conservation Area (PECCA). Pemba is one of the Ecoreginal Priority sites in the Eastern African Marine Ecoreigion. The proposed PECCA will involve: establishment of a new Marine Protected Area in Pemba Island; identification of gaps and priorities for action as well as ways of working together with local communities; development of management plans for corals, mangroves and fisheries, including community management and restoration programs, enforcement, licensing and alternative fishing gears; development of strategies to conserve endangered species and identify nesting areas, nursery / breeding grounds and habitats of turtles and dolphins and work to achieve their conservation and; promote sustainable tourism through the development of site specific eco-tourism programs and promote education and awareness on the part of tourism stakeholders.
The objectives include:
- Establishment of a multi use marine conservation area at PECCA.
- Maintenance and / or improve ecosystems and resource yields within PECCA through proper management systems which include active local community participation.
- Full involvement of local community in the planning, implementation and monitoring of the natural resources of PECCA.
- Local communities attain greater awareness of conservation and sustained resource use, through educational and public awareness programs.
- Biological and socio-economical research and monitoring provide the basis for rational management, development and exploitation of PECCA.
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Menai Bay Conservation Area
The Menai Bay Conservation Area (MBCA), gazetted in 1995, is located in the south western tip of Unguja Island, of the Zanzibar Archipelago. It covers an area of 470 square km extending into two regions, of three districts which take in 17 villages. The area is rich in marine resources and one of the most famous fishing grounds. A rush of fishermen and use of none friendly fishing gears resulted in the degradation of marine resources.
Menai Bay is one of the Ecoreginal Priority sites in Eastern African Marine Ecoregion. WWF support, with funding from WWF-Switzerland, of Menai Bay has been utilised to establish the first ever Marine Protected Areas in Zanzibar. It paved the way for more MPAs in Zanzibar and lots of lessons and experience have been learned on marine resource management in the area. The purpose of gazetting the area was to protect marine resources and improve the fishery.
The conservation work in Menai Bay currently continues to operate through the Department of Fisheries of Zanzibar that facilitates communities to manage marine resources. The existing Marine and Coastal Environment Management Project (MACEMP) is providing the operating costs to fisheries for the project.
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Strengthening Community Capacity for Fishery Co-Management
This is a five years project for Strengthening Community Capacity for Fishery Co-management (SCCaFCoM), is being implemented in the non-protected areas of Rufiji-Mafia-Kilwa seascape in Tanzania, which is a globally outstanding priority site in the Eastern African Marine Ecoregion.
The overall goal of the project is to “Improve socio-economic well-being of coastal Rufiji-Mafia-Kilwa communities through sustainable, participatory and equitable utilization, management and protection of marine and coastal resources”.
The biodiversity and the natural-resource dependent livelihoods of the coastal population of this seascape are threatened in several ways. Weak capacity of local communities to mitigate those threats and to engage in proactive management causes further environmental and socio-economic vulnerability. This project intended to contribute to addressing the threats by strengthening the governance and management capacity of the local communities for fisheries co-management. This is in line with WWF–EAME action plan which focuses in various threats, among others is the artisanal fishing activities which provide food, income and employment to hundreds of thousands of families in EAME region. Poor fisheries governance systems, illegal fishing practices, by-catch problems, poor fishing equipment, conflicts of resource use between artisanal and industrial fishing companies are all contributing to continued state of problems in RUMAKI area. SCaFCom project is contributing to addressing these threats by strengthening the governance and management capacity of the local communities in collaborative fisheries management.
For more information click here to visit WWF International
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Development of Quirimbas National Park
The Quirimbas Archipelago in the Cabo Delgado province of Mozambique is a chain of 28 islands stretching almost 800 km from just north of the city of Pemba to the town of Palma in Northern Mozambique. The EAME program has identified it as Cross-border Global Priority Site. The Quirimbas National Park was created in 2002 following a request by local communities to the government. The park includes the southernmost 11 of these islands and a vast expanse of mainland forest giving it a total area of 750,639 ha. The project will support the government of Mozambique's efforts to establish some park infrastructure, deploy a complement of park personnel to manage the park as well as facilitate linkages among the various stakeholders within the park areas. This project is also a response to recent research findings which established that the parks' resource status and the trends of resource use necessitated the need for the immediate implementation of a park management plan that would help the conservation of the park's ecological processes and resources, which would in turn secure livelihoods for people who depend on the park for survival.
For more information click here to visit WWF International
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Developing the Marine Protected Area in the Primeiras and Segundas Archipelagos
The goal is to protect the biodiversity of Primeiras and Segundas Archipelago. The Primeiras and Segundas Archipelagos are two strings of islands found off the coast of Mozambique, which form a nearly continuous archipelago between Pebane and Angoche (Rodrigues et al., 1999). The Primeiras and Segundas Archipelagos complex reveals high lagoon diversity and high cover of hard corals, eight species of mangroves, creek and basin forests, while beaches provide important green turtle nesting sites. The continental shelf is narrow with fringing reefs which in the north have substantial soft corals while those in the south have a denser cover of hard corals within spur and groove formations. This protected area would enhance the interest from the tourism industry, would support the creation of jobs and income and would bring prestige to the area. Furthermore, there were already signs of over-fishing and information on endangered species being affected - as was the case of the sooty terns (Sterna fuscata) in Puga-Puga Island. This is famous for shrimp fishery leading to conflict with local fishermen on grounds that industrial and semi-industrial vessel destroys their shrimp and fish, their habitat and even the fishing gears. This conflict needs to be addressed very urgently and, it is clear that a MPA is the best option. There was a 30% increase in number of fishermen between 2001 and 2002 in the area due to collapse of cashew production
For more information click here to visit WWF International
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Bazaruto Marine Natural Resource Management Project, Mozambique
This is a Community based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) project, which is being implemented at Bazaruto Archipelago National Park (BANP) in Mozambique. The project Goal is to make local communities benefit from and contribute to the conservation of coastal and marine biodiversity in the Bazaruto Archipelago National Park. The project covers an area of 1,430 square km comprising of the five islands and surrounding waters of the Bazaruto Archipelago. Which provide protection to the largest and only remaining viable population of dugongs in the Western Indian Ocean; five species of sea turtles; coral reefs; whales, dolphins and other marine animals; plus several endemic terrestrial gastropods and lizards and hosts a significant aggregation of Palaearctic migrant water birds. The archipelago supports a resident population of about 3,500 people living in seven communities that strongly dependent on the natural resources for their livelihoods. Small-scale fishing is the primary activity and main source of income for over 70% of households. Other important activities include crop and livestock production. It is also is a popular tourism destination, with a focus on high value, low impact tourism.
For more information click here to visit WWF International
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Kiunga Marine National Reserve Conservation and Development Project - Lamu District Kenya
The Kiunga Marine National Reserve (KMNR) is exceptional among Kenyan Marine Protected Areas in that it is in a near pristine state. The varied ecosystem, include wide varieties of fish, coral formation, sea grass beds, beaches and extensive mangroves. It is also one of the few remaining refuge for sea turtles in Kenya and possibly dugong. WWF has been working with these partners to develop a long-term management strategy for the Reserve.
The main goal is to safeguard the biodiversity and integrity of physical and ecological processes of Kiunga Marine National Reserve for the health, welfare, enjoyment and inspiration of present and future generations. Although the area is characterised by low population, they depend 100% on fishing and mangrove cutting but have little / limited access to health and education and awareness, poor infrastructure, high incidence of malaria and; vulnerability to HIV / AIDS due to high levels of ignorance.
For more information click here to visit WWF International
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Marine Fisheries Certification Project
This is a small project operating in Kenya, Mozambique and Tanzania, using the model developed by WWF’s Community Fisheries Program with the intended goal of identifying at least one candidate marine fishery suitable for Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification in each country. It is a two years project involving biological, ecological and socioeconomic studies of profiles of individual fishery which is currently being gathered through the pre-analysis process. The project goal is to promote fisheries certification in Eastern African Ecoregion by ensuring the incorporation of biodiversity conservation into fisheries management practices where it initially had no prominence. The available information will help identify issues that need to be addressed and thus will help the governments and ecoregion program such as WWF to establish a regional plan for bringing about sustainable fisheries in the Eastern African Marine Ecoregion and carrying MSC certifications. The project also creates a possibility of market niche and price premium for fishery products in a competitive environment. The fish and fishery products will become more marketable and increase the market share particularly in areas where the importance of product certification is well considered. The use of market based incentives to encourage responsible utilization of natural resources is instruments recognized and promoted by sustainable fishing and therefore meet the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD) objectives.
For more information click here to visit WWF International
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