The Socio-Economics of the West, Central and Southern African Coastal Communities

1.2 The Establishment of Large Marine Ecosystems as Management Areas

An Ecosystem-Based Management Approach

In 1995, the GEF approved the use of the LME as a unit for ecosystem-based management of international coastal oceans. 35 The ecosystem-based process consists of a five- module approach focused on productivity, fish and fisheries, pollution and ecosystem health, socioeconomics and governance (Figure 3). 36

The LME concept was introduced in the mid-1980s as an alternative to the pre-existing sectoral approach to marine conservation. 30 As opposed to the management of individual resources and country-delineated boundaries, ecosystem- based management is “driven by explicit goals, executed by policies, protocols, and practices, and made adaptable by monitoring and research based on our best understanding of the ecological interactions and processes necessary to sustain ecosystem structure and function.” 31 Each LME is defined by ecological criteria (bathymetry, hydrography, productivity, and trophic relationships), and encompasses ocean space of at least 200,000 km 2 . 32 The coastal oceans in which the 66 LMEs are located produce 80 per cent of the world’s annual marine fisheries catch. 33 These areas are at risk from unsustainable use that has led to coastal ocean pollution, nutrient over-enrichment, habitat degradation (of sea grasses, corals and mangroves for example), overfishing, biodiversity loss, and climate change effects. 34

Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis and Strategic Action Programmes

The 1995 GEF Operational Strategy developed two key processes for countries to work together in order to manage the LME transboundary systems. First, countries and partners jointly compile a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) consisting of data and factual information on the first four indicators in the five-module approach: productivity, pollution and ecosystem health, fish and fisheries and socioeconomics. This united effort fills information gaps in joint understanding of how the LME works. The second process, the creation of a Strategic Action Programme (SAP),

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