The West African island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe has formally designated its first two protected sites off its coast.
This comes less than a year after presenting its plans to establish a national network of eight marine protected areas (MPAs) covering 93 square kilometers (36 square miles) in the Gulf of Guinea.
The two MPAs include Ilhéu das Rolas–Malanza–Jalé, on the southern coast of São Tomé Island, and Santana, on the island’s eastern coast. Nilton de Sousa Pontes, minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development, announced the official designation during the Our Ocean Conference in Mombasa, Kenya.
“These [newly protected] areas include critical coastal and marine habitats, such as mangroves, nesting beaches, rocky reefs and important fishing grounds, and support emblematic and threatened species including marine turtles, seabirds and other marine biodiversity,” João Pessoa, the country’s Director of Fisheries, told Mongabay via email.
Santana covers 7.4 km2 (2.86 mi2) of coastal waters, of which 1 km2 (0.4 mi2) is a fully protected no-take zone where industrial fishing and the collection of other marine resources are prohibited. The rest is reserved for authorized use by artisanal fishers using legal gear, scientific research and other low-impact activities.
Ilhéu das Rolas-Malanza-Jalé covers 55.8 km2 (21.54 mi2), with 8 km2 (3 mi2) under full protection from any extractive or destructive activities.
The remaining six MPAs will be located around Príncipe Island. They have been approved by the Council of Ministers and are awaiting promulgation by the president before publication in the Official Gazette, said Claricela Sequeira Tebús Andrade of Fundação Príncipe, one of the implementing partners of the national network of MPAs consortium led by the conservation NGO Fauna & Flora.
Five of the proposed sites will have mixed protection zones combining fully protected and partially protected areas, while one will be fully protected, Andrade told Mongabay.
Andrade said that the two MPAs already designated are important as they are located close to fishing communities and protect habitats essential for the conservation of marine biodiversity.
However, implementing them comes with challenges, particularly around fishing access, enforcement, and livelihood support, she added. There are still insufficient state technical resources, Andrade said, adding there is also a lack of awareness amongst fishermen about the use of certain fishing methods in sensitive habitats.
The MPAs will be co-managed by local communities, fishers, government institutions, civil society organizations and technical partners.
“Community participation is central to the management approach,” Pessoa said.
He added the next phase will focus on implementation, including preparing management plans, establishing co-management arrangements, raising awareness, strengthening monitoring systems, and improving enforcement capacity.
“The MPAs are not being created as paper parks, but as part of a broader effort to strengthen marine governance, fisheries sustainability, biodiversity protection and community resilience in São Tomé and Príncipe,” Pessoa said.
Banner image: Green turtle hatchlings on their way to sea. Image courtesy of Vasco Pissarra / Fundação Príncipe.
