Saving mangroves with sustainable management

Abstract

Mangroves exist in over 100 countries and are home to a wealth of biodiversity. For fish, they are habitats in which to spawn, grow and shelter; for humans, they are important sources of food and livelihoods. But climate change, pollution, and unsustainable fishing practices threaten them. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is working with communities to apply the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries to mangrove fisheries because it provides a holistic solution to restoring the balance between human activity and nature. In Costa Rica, FAO provided training to ensure greater livelihood stability for women shellfish harvesters in the Chomes estuary and to support their efforts to safeguard biodiversity in the mangroves. In Peru, the Coastal Fisheries Initiative provided fishers and harvesters with the skills to co-manage the Tumbes National Mangrove Sanctuary. As a result, a consortium of six fisher and harvester organizations signed a 20-year agreement to co-manage the mangrove. In Senegal, FAO worked through the Coastal Fisheries Initiative to safeguard and restore marine life in the mangroves of the Siné Saloum Delta and sustain the livelihoods of fish-dependent communities there.