A technical seminar was held on September 17 and 18, 2024, in Maputo City, to engage the various stakeholders in the process of developing the Strategy and Action Plan for the Expansion of the National Network of Marine Protected Areas, including a brainstorming session on the contribution of Other effective marines area-based conservation measures' (OECMs) in Mozambique.
The workshop was organized by the Mozambique Oceanographic Institute (InOM) with the support of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Rare-Mozambique and was attended by around 40 participants representing different sectors, including government, the private sector, civil society and academia.
The workshop allowed the different stakeholders to start by reflecting together on the concept of OECMs, including the criteria and their potential contribution to the country achieving its national marine conservation targets. In the second part of the workshop, the vision, mission and overall objective of the strategy in Mozambique were jointly defined, as well as the respective Intervention pillars, strategic objectives and activities.
The Strategy for Expanding the Network of Marine Protected Areas has been under development since August 2024 through WCS support to InOM and should be completed by the end of this year. It aims to accelerate the process of declaring Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), increasing marine protection by at least 12% by 2030, while ensuring ecological representativeness, connectivity, sustainability and effective management, thus contributing to national and international conservation goals, as well as to the country's socio-economic development. The integration of OECMs into the strategy is the result of support from Rare, which, in collaboration with InOM and WCS, is encouraging discussion on how these areas can also contribute to national targets.
It is important to note that further seminars are planned over the next four months, including regional public consultations to ensure maximum participation in the development of this Strategy.