Ocean Decade Challenge 9: Skills, knowledge, technology and participation for all.
WIO Context: Achieving GBF Target 3 requires integrating marine conservation into national policies while ensuring local knowledge and community priorities are included. Many WIO countries lack clear strategies, harmonized data, and inclusive decision-making processes to develop effective conservation plans. MARCOP’s Approach Ensures That Marine Conservation is Not Just a Global Goal, but a Locally Owned and Implemented Process.
François Baelen / Ocean Image Bank
Thematic Area 1How MARCOP Strengthens National Planning:
✓ Bridging Local and National Priorities
– Facilitating multi-stakeholder consultations with governments, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs), civil society, and conservation organizations.
– Ensuring local voices shape national MPA & OECM planning.
✓ Enhancing Data & Knowledge for Decision-Making
– Conducting baseline assessments to identify data gaps and key enabling conditions.
– Supporting science-based, data-driven conservation policies.
– Mapping MPAs & OECMs to inform the WIO MPA Outlook.
– Promoting adaptive management for more effective MPA governance.
Ocean Decade Challenge 2: Protect and restore ecosystems and biodiversity.
WIO Context: MPAs & OECMs in the WIO region are fragmented, limiting species movement and fishery replenishment.
Hannes Klostermann / Ocean Image Bank
Thematic Area 2Currently, MPAs and OECMs in the WIO region are scattered, isolated, and lack connectivity. This fragmentation reduces the ability of marine ecosystems to support biodiversity, replenish fisheries, and build resilience to climate change.
MARCOP’s Solution:
Enhancing Ecological and Socioeconomic Connectivity
⦁ Mapping & analyzing critical ecological corridors, fish migration routes, and socio-economic linkages.
⦁ Identifying priority areas where connectivity should be enhanced to improve genetic diversity and ecosystem resilience.
⦁ Supporting the development of well-connected conservation networks by integrating Marine Spatial Planning (MSP), fisheries management zones, and climate adaptation strategies.
Strengthening Policy Alignment and Governance for Connectivity
⦁ Embedding connectivity goals into National Biodiversity Strategies (NBSAPs), Blue Economy Strategies, and other marine policy frameworks.
⦁ Facilitating transboundary cooperation between neighboring WIO countries to ensure marine connectivity is addressed at a regional scale.
⦁ Improving governance structures to ensure MPAs and OECMs are managed as an interconnected system rather than isolated areas.
Our Current initiatives:
• LMMA and MPA Mapping for the WIO
• Social Connectivity supporting ecological connectivity- The Western Indian Ocean Marine Protected Areas Network (WIOMPAN) Link: https://wiomsa.org/wiompan/
Ocean Decade Challenge 2: Protect and restore ecosystems and biodiversity.
WIO Context: Less than 50% of MPAs in the WIO region are effectively managed due to governance and financial gaps.
Lars von Ritter Zahony / Ocean Image Bank
Thematic Area 3Strengthening the Effectiveness and Equitable Management of Marine Conservation Areas
Many MPAs and OECMs in the WIO region are under-resourced and unevenly governed. Management effectiveness is inconsistent, and gaps in finance, technology, and institutional coordination reduce ecological impact and erode community trust.
Challenges:
⦁ Inconsistent management effectiveness, limited staffing/skills, and high turnover at site level.
⦁ Governance gaps (unclear mandates, weak coordination, limited transparency and equity).
⦁ Fragmented monitoring tools and data flows that don’t feed adaptive decision-making.
MARCOP’s Solution:
Building Competence and Accountability in Marine Management
⦁ Developing targeted capacity-building programmes to strengthen leadership, planning, budgeting, and monitoring skills among MPA/OECM managers.
⦁ Supporting the application of standardized tools (e.g., IMETT) to diagnose performance and guide improvement.
⦁ Facilitating peer-learning through WIOMPAN and other networks to share tested practices and solutions.
Ensuring Equitable and Transparent Governance
⦁ Undertaking participatory governance assessments (e.g., SAPA, SAGE) to embed accountability and inclusion.
⦁ Reviewing institutional arrangements at site/national levels to clarify roles, close gaps, and recommend reforms.
⦁ Promoting a systems-based approach that balances ecological, social, and financial needs for durable results.
Ocean Decade Challenge 4: Develop a sustainable, resilient and equitable ocean economy.
WIO Context: IPLCs’ traditional knowledge and land rights are often ignored in marine conservation policies.
Jeff Hester / Ocean Image Bank
Thematic Area 4Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) are the frontline stewards of marine biodiversity, yet their traditional knowledge, governance systems, and customary rights are often overlooked in conservation planning.
Challenges IPLCs Face in Marine Conservation:
Our current initiatives:
Ocean Decade Challenge 9: Skills, knowledge, technology and participation for all.
WIO Context: Many WIO countries lack standardised monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems, making it difficult to track conservation progress and inform adaptive management.
Stefan Andrews / Ocean Image Bank
Thematic Area 5Monitoring and Reporting Progress of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs)
Reliable, regionally comparable data on conservation outcomes remain scarce across the Western Indian Ocean. Countries use different tools, indicators, and reporting formats, making it difficult to measure progress toward Target 3 or to communicate collective achievements. Without a harmonised monitoring and learning framework, the region risks under-reporting its advances and missing opportunities to adaptively manage sites.
Challenges:
⦁ Lack of standardised indicators and methods for assessing management effectiveness and biodiversity outcomes.
⦁ Fragmented data systems and weak information sharing between national agencies and regional bodies.
⦁ Limited technical capacity for monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) and insufficient linkage to policy reporting.
MARCOP’s Solution:
Establishing a Regional Monitoring and Learning Framework
⦁ Developing a comprehensive regional MEL framework for MPAs and OECMs aligned with GBF Target 3 indicators.
⦁ Designing and validating science-based ecological and governance metrics that can be applied consistently across WIO countries.
⦁ Building capacity among practitioners and government staff to collect, interpret, and report data using open-access tools and platforms.
Enhancing Data Integration and Knowledge Sharing
⦁ Consolidating national datasets into an accessible regional information service that tracks coverage, effectiveness, and equity outcomes.
⦁ Facilitating cross-country learning and comparative analysis through WIOMPAN, Nairobi Convention, and other MARCOP partners.
⦁ Supporting countries to prepare harmonised progress reports for regional and global platforms such as the CBD and the Ocean Decade Network.
Physical Address: Mizingani Street,
House No. 734, Zanzibar.
Postal: P. O. Box 3298, Zanzibar,
United Republic of Tanzania
