KMA Launch Program to Protect and Monitor Mangrove to Combat Degradation of Ecosystem

By Robby Ngoba

Email, thecoastnewspaper@gmail.com

The Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) has adopted a proactive mangrove protection and monitoring programme of restoring degraded ecosystems and mitigation efforts of climate change along the coastal region.

Speaking to the media after planting over 25,000 mangrove seedlings in Kidundu, Kilifi County, KMA environmental officer Stella Muthike said the programme which was partnering with the Kenya Forest Services (KFS) and local community aligned with the government ambitious national target of planting 15 billion trees by 2032.

She said the initiative also formed part of broader efforts to raise Kenya’s forest cover from below threshold of 10 percent to at least 35 percent.

“As an authority, we are saying mangroves are not just trees but they provide habitats for marine life. KMA and other like minded partners are committed to restoring these vital ecosystems and also unlocking socio-economic benefits for our communities,” she said.

According to her the need to plant more mangroves and monitoring their survival rate insisting that they are better compared to other terrestrial trees in terms of carbon absorption.

“Mangroves are ocean species breeding grounds. They need to be protected because they act as a critical biodiversity spot in the ecosystem that needs concerted efforts of protection,” she said.

To help the mangroves do well, the officer called upon the public to stop clearing terrestrial vegetation cover.

“When you clear vegetation, soil is carried by water into the ocean leading to segmentation and pollution hence suffocating mangroves with their growth and regeneration.”

Sara Zawadi Kea, a Sokoke forest station manager, underscored the usefulness of mangroves in the past, present and posterity.

She emphasised the need for like minded partners to protect the mangroves, highlighting that some species are already on the verge of extinction.

The manager urged community to help The government in identifying the people who are encroaching to prevent future dangers.

“Our local communities depend on the mangroves. Lets come together, raise our voices and prevent encroachment of these species,” she said.

Mtakimau Community Forest Association (CFA) chairperson Elijah Chivatsi called on the county government of Kilifi to collaborate with community based organisations (CBOs) and community members to identify and recruit mangrove scouts, to up surveillance.

“We need to have scouts who will be moving around to boost surveillance of mangroves, the same way BMU’s have scouts patrolling along the beaches, the County should emulate the same,” he said.