Governing Through Networks: Working Toward a Sustainable Management of West Africa’s Coastal Mangrove Ecosystems - The Land/Ocean Interactions in the Coastal Zone of West and Central Africa - page 196

Table 1 Change in mangrove cover and protection levels in PRCM countries

Country Number of mangrove species % change in mangrove cover (1980-2006) % mangroves located in protected areas

Mauritania 3 39, 3 62, 5

Senegal 7 -23, 8 42, 5

Gambia 7 -17, 5 3, 5

Guinea Bissau 6 8, 7 35, 5

Guinea Conakry 7 -31, 9 0, 26

Sierra Leone 6 -37, 3 14, 5

(Sources UNEP 2007 ; Tendeng et al. 2012 )

mangroves under protection versus the rate of change in
their coverage over approximately 25 years.
In the case of Mauritania and Guinea Bissau, the high
amount of protection afforded these ecosystems corresponds
to an increase in the size of this ecosystem prior to the
establishment of the RAMPAO. In the case of Senegal,
however, mangrove coverage decreased between 1980 and
2006 in spite of the high level of protection. To enhance the
effectiveness of MPAs in general and to enhance their
specific capacity to protect critical mangrove habitats, the
PRCM funded 2 projects at over $2 million euros between
2008 and 2012. Key non-governmental PRCM partners,
including the FIBA and the International Union, imple-
mented these projects for IUCN that made concerted efforts
to improve the management, participative governance
mechanisms, and networking in several MPAs in the region.
End of project reports revealed an improvement in the
management of MPAs and their natural resources through
the implementation of activities such as the development
and implementation of updated management plans, moni-
toring and evaluation of the effectiveness of management,
ecological and species monitoring, capacity building in
conservation and mangrove restoration, and the establish-
ment of functional community governance structures and a
pool of expertise (FIBA 2012a , b ). The involvement of
more stakeholders (communities, professionals especially
fishermen, authorities, etc.) was a key factor in the success
of these projects. The evaluation of the project to support
the RAMPAO network showed that significant progress was
made in the management in 6 MPAs in 4 countries (Bam-
boung,

Project leads also found that the inclusion of MPAs in a
formal network was extremely beneficial for the MPA
managers, especially at the beginning of the MPA man-
agement planning process. The RAMPAO facilitated tech-
nical exchanges between site managers and specialists, and
networking at the human and ecological levels using sound
science to develop coherent and effective action. At the
same time, the network has nurtured the development of
strong relationships between the human actors. It has
organized events and activities that promote the exchange
of information, leading to mutual learning that helps create
synergies between MPAs. The network will continue to
enhance the capacity of MPA actors through mutual
learning and exchange to further the progress made by the
two PRCM projects. It will also support additional efforts to
ensure that all mangrove habitats benefit from consistent
and coherent protection, effective management, and quality
monitoring regardless of their home countries.
However, while the RAMPAO has proven that net-
worked governance is an effective strategy for improving
coastal resources management, it confronts many obstacles.
Financial sustainability to support the costs of convening
members and other network activities is a major concern.
Attracting greater financial resources to support the con-
tinued improvement of individual member MPAs continues
to be difficult. Furthermore, although the network strives to
ensure ecological coherence, gaps exist in the representation
of key habitats such as corals and seamounts, and the
connectivity between MPAs is little understood and requires
more scientific study (Tendeng et al. 2012 ). Political
instability and shifting stakeholders makes continued
training necessary in spite of the lack of resources. Yet,
despite of these challenges, the commitment of myriad
stakeholders at all scales ensures the network will continue
to grow and increase its effectiveness.

Niumi, Urok, Orango, Joao Vieira et Tristao)

between 2008 and 2012 (FIBA 2012c ).
While these effects cannot be entirely attributed to
RAMPAO network, the evaluation found that the impact of
the network in ensuring a sustainable management of crit-
ical and endangered habitats in these areas to be positive.
Furthermore, surveys conducted during the evaluation
revealed that 57 % of network members believed that the
RAMPAO had a positive impact on building the manage-
ment capacity of MPA staff, which directly impacts the
ability

Conclusion

The complexity of interconnected human and natural sys-
tems tests traditional natural resource management
assumptions and practices. Moreover, the achievement of

to implement effective mangrove conservation

measures.