Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Fig. 2
PRCM impact on
complex problems of
conservation in West Africa
West
African and
world biodiversity
endangered
Global level
Regional impact caused by the
fact that fishing stocks migrate ; conservation
measures must be replicated in neighboring
countries to ensure positive change.
Regional level
Diminished commercial value offish catch; Trade
agreements ensure high exportation of catchwhich
decreases the positive impact of theindustry on national
economies ; Governmentand parliament have power to
regulate and support anti-poverty initiatives
National level
Migratory fish stocks experience pressure from local fishermen
and from immigrant fishermen from neighboring countries. The
protein intake and economies of local communities suffer .
Local level
The PRCM West African Mangrove Initiative
States' commitment to marine conservation, and for the
PRCM, it represented a crucial linkage with government
policies and their harmonization at the regional scale.
The coalition emerged as a result of the natural evolution
of a process. Even its funding model evolved naturally
within this historical process since the PRCM's two largest
donors, the MAVA Foundation and the Embassy of the
Netherlands in Dakar, had already been funding coastal
zone conservation initiatives for many years and were
involved in the planning process. And as a result of this
evolution, the entire process was already deeply rooted and
the prominent members of the coalition had long-standing
relationships based on trust and friendship, thus conferring
tremendous
As a coalition, the PRCM is equipped with coordination and
communication competences. It maintains a broad reach,
which touches a large number of preservation and man-
agement problems occurring in the West African coastal
and marine zone. Through this structure, the PRCM was
able to combine programmatic activities with networking
activities for maximum impact in its first two phases
(PRCM
2012a
). For example, projects falling under the
conservation component helped to improve the manage-
ment of MPAs. Project leaders then coordinated with efforts
to protect specific species such as manatee or marine turtles
(Duval-Diop
2012
). Those initiatives were then supported
by broader participative governance and management pro-
jects. All of these efforts then informed the advocacy and
networking efforts undertaken in projects falling under the
integrated governance component.
This combination of on-the-ground pilot experience and
regional policy advocacy is evident in the West African
Mangrove Initiative (WAMI) funded and coordinated by the
PRCM from 2007 to 2010 (Duval-Diop
2012
; PRCM
2012a
,
b
). Using a participative approach grounded in local
communities, the project helped to conserve and restore
mangrove ecosystems in six countries (Fig.
3
) and to
improve the well-being of the local communities. With a
budget of approximately 480,000 euros, the project was
implemented in several phases including: the establishment
of baseline data and reference studies; the transfer of
knowledge on mangrove restoration and management to
local communities; the implementation of pilot activities
relating to restoration and alternative livelihoods best
practices; and the identification of gaps and inconsistencies
strength
to
the
overall
architecture
of
the
initiative.
The initial grouping of some forty institutions from six
countries in a regional program with one shared vision
required considerable effort by all. Not only did new para-
digms and changes of scale in approaching problems have
to be adopted, but also new models for operating and
managing relationships. This called for major effort and
investment
long
before
project-based
work
actually
commenced.
The objective of the PRCM during its first two phases
(2004-2012) was to promote, with other actors in the
region, a shared vision of regional conservation priorities
and to divide up the responsibilities for reaching this vision
according to the specific competencies of each organization.
The articulation and coordination of these activities were
meant to create a coherent program of interventions that not
only built synergy but also decisively influenced public
policies relative to the development of the coastal zone and
the exploitation of its resources.
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