Development of a community-based marine turtle conservation program

22_SOL1_Releasing_and_burying_captured_trurtles_©_E_Aruna_-_RAP-SL

By: Edward Aruna

Organisation: Reptile and Amphibian Program – Sierra Leone

Location: Freetown, Western Area, Sierra Leone

Published: 12 May 2016

Photo: Releasing captured turtles © E. Aruna, Reptile and Amphibian Program – Sierra Leone

Summary: This solution addresses the killing of sea turtles, egg poaching and the unawareness on their importance in Sierra Leone. To reduce the killing of turtles, local fishermen receive materials to repair nets destroyed by turtle entanglements. Additionally, locals are supporting the surveillance of nesting beaches and by-catch. To raise awareness towards the importance of biodiversity, education materials are produced and distributed during seminars and workshops held with community leaders.

To share the wealth of global knowledge on the  aspects of Integrated Ocean Management (IOM) with the 22 countries of the Abidjan Convention’s region, the Mami Wata project takes advantage of existing IOM solutions that have been successfully implemented already. The Blue Solutions presented here are part of and featured on the Marine and Coastal Solutions Portal on the PANORAMA platform. These solutions are being contributed by a broad range of providers from across the planet.