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Key Biodiversity Areas: keep nature thriving
Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) are the most important places in the world for species and their habitats. Faced with a global environmental crisis we need to focus our collective efforts on conserving the places that matter most. The KBA Programme supports the identification, mapping, monitoring and conservation of KBAs to help safeguard the most critical sites for nature on our planet – from rainforests to reefs, mountains to marshes, deserts to grasslands and to the deepest parts of the oceans.
Somaliland initiates its First Marine Protected Area
On March 15-16, the Zeila Co-Management Association, the Somaliland Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Development, and the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change came together with partners to plan the creation of Somaliland’s first Marine Protected Area (MPA). Secure Fisheries hosted the workshop that included Zeila CMA, Blue Ventures, Candlelight, the UN FAO and UN Environment Programme, and local members of the fisheries private sector. Workshop participants discussed the scientific and legal foundations needed to design an effective MPA in the waters near Zeila.
Last year, the Zeila CMA proposed the creation of an MPA as part of its community-led fisheries management efforts. The MoLFD and MECC support MPA design as part of their strategic plans. When launched, the MPA will provide protection for coral reef and mangrove ecosystems while conserving valuable fish stocks for local fishers. The goal of the MPA will be to balance environmental protection with access to fish stocks for livelihood support.
The waters around Zeila have been designated as a Key Biodiversity Area due to high fish productivity, rich coral reef systems, islands that support migratory bird populations, and vibrant mangrove forests. However, a lack of fisheries management and unregulated fishing by foreign vessels poses a potential threat to fisheries health. The Zeila CMA, created in 2020, is partnering with Secure Fisheries and this wider partner consortium to co-design an MPA intended to support artisanal fisheries while providing the level of environmental protection needed for ecosystem integrity, ecotourism, and long-term resilience.
Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) are the most important places in the world for species and their habitats. Faced with a global environmental crisis we need to focus our collective efforts on conserving the places that matter most. The KBA Programme supports the identification, mapping, monitoring and conservation of KBAs to help safeguard the most critical sites for nature on our planet – from rainforests to reefs, mountains to marshes, deserts to grasslands and to the deepest parts of the oceans.
Somaliland initiates its First Marine Protected Area
On March 15-16, the Zeila Co-Management Association, the Somaliland Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Development, and the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change came together with partners to plan the creation of Somaliland’s first Marine Protected Area (MPA). Secure Fisheries hosted the workshop that included Zeila CMA, Blue Ventures, Candlelight, the UN FAO and UN Environment Programme, and local members of the fisheries private sector. Workshop participants discussed the scientific and legal foundations needed to design an effective MPA in the waters near Zeila.
Last year, the Zeila CMA proposed the creation of an MPA as part of its community-led fisheries management efforts. The MoLFD and MECC support MPA design as part of their strategic plans. When launched, the MPA will provide protection for coral reef and mangrove ecosystems while conserving valuable fish stocks for local fishers. The goal of the MPA will be to balance environmental protection with access to fish stocks for livelihood support.
The waters around Zeila have been designated as a Key Biodiversity Area due to high fish productivity, rich coral reef systems, islands that support migratory bird populations, and vibrant mangrove forests. However, a lack of fisheries management and unregulated fishing by foreign vessels poses a potential threat to fisheries health. The Zeila CMA, created in 2020, is partnering with Secure Fisheries and this wider partner consortium to co-design an MPA intended to support artisanal fisheries while providing the level of environmental protection needed for ecosystem integrity, ecotourism, and long-term resilience.
