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

Supported by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), these west, central and southern African nations have nonetheless taken great strides in marine governance and management, beginning with the 1984 Convention for Cooperation in the Protection, Management and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment of the Atlantic Coast of the West, Central and Southern Africa Region (Abidjan Convention). This umbrella legal framework was established for the protection, conservation and development of the marine area extending from Mauritania to South Africa. 3 With the emergence of the Global Environment Facility’s (GEF) 1995 Operational Strategy approving the use of LMEs, 4 a partnership began and, in 2005, at the Seventh Conference of the Parties (COP 7) of the Abidjan Convention, countries within each of the Benguela, Guinea and Canary Current LMEs were organized as “autonomous nodes”. Each region now benefits from a GEF-funded LME project. 5

and southern Africa’s development as it demonstrates a readiness among countries to address sustainability. 6 This readiness arrives at a pivotal moment, when west, central and southern African LME fish stock levels are declining from unsustainable harvesting; uncertainty surrounds the integrity of marine and coastal ecosystems; water quality has declined from land- and sea-based activities; and coastal and seabed habitats have deteriorated. 7 Time is of the essence. In order to shift the ever-changing relationship between humans and their environment to a sustainable status quo, governing bodies and stakeholders must understand the value that the west, central and southern African LMEs provide. In addition to establishing a baseline of ecological data regarding the coverage, ecological outputs and functions of LMEs and responding to changes thereto, policymakers must also be aware of the people dependent on and acting within these coastal and ocean ecosystems, and the value placed on their associated benefits. 8

The “Blue Growth” theme of the most recent Abidjan Conference (COP 11) is a major milestone in west, central

Mauritania

Mali

Niger

Senegal

Chad

The Gambia

Guinea-Bissau

Guinea

Benin

Togo

Nigeria

Sierra Leone

Côte d’Ivoire

Central African Republic

Ghana

Liberia

Cameroon

Equatorial Guinea

Gabon

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Congo

Angola

Figure 1b: The GCLME and bordering countries. Source: International Waters Learning Exchange & Resource Network http://iwlearn.net/iw-projects/1188/maps_graphics/gulf-of-guinea/view (accessed August 1, 2016). Map data: Google Imagery, 2016 NASA, TerraMetrics.

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