In the beginning of March the results of the monitoring programs were presented and discussed among the stakeholders in order to improve the knowledge about the use of resources, threats to nature and the ecological conservation status of the park to support and strengthen the management of the area.
The event held in three locations, namely: Ponta do Ouro on March 1st, Santa Maria on March 2nd and in Maputo City on March 4th, was attended by about 59 people, including rangers, members of the community fishing councils, monitors, government representatives, members of civil society, among others.
These events happened under the Blue Economy project, funded by the France Embassy, which aims to support the monitoring, tagging and conservation programs of marine turtles between Ponta do Ouro and Ponta Abril, and the monitoring of artisanal and subsistence fishing in the Bay of Maputo.
The sea turtle monitoring program in this region began in 1988 in Inhaca Island and Portuguese Island, and in 1994 between Ponta Malongane and Ponta Dobela. In 2007, with the support of various entities such as the Associação para Investigação Costeira e Marinha (Association for Coastal and Marine Research) and CTV, the monitoring program began to cover the entire extension between Ponta do Ouro and Santa Maria. The program currently includes 44 local monitors and benefits from the strong involvement of various stakeholders, especially tour operators in the region. This program aims to collect information on the number of tracks and nests of the two species of sea turtles that nest in the area. The program also includes the application of markers.
The monitoring program for artisanal and subsistence fisheries in the southwestern part of the Bay was established in 2016 by the Ponta do Ouro Partial Marine Reserve (currently integrated in the Maputo National Park) in coordination with the National Institute for Fisheries Research now Mozambique Oceanographic Institute. This program propose is to collect information on fisheries and invertebrate in the Mabuluco and Santa Maria Fishing Centers, with the objective to gather information to improve adaptive management measures of fisheries resources.
The Maputo National Park, created by the Decree No. 100/2021, aims to ensure the protection, conservation, preservation and integrated management of wild flora and fauna, without neglecting the protection of sites, landscapes and geological formations of particular scientific, cultural and aesthetic value.
To access the presentations, follow the link below:
