Resilient Coasts in the Western Indian Ocean (WIO)

A consortium of partners comprising the Nairobi Convention Secretariat, IUCN ESARO, WIOMSA and CORDIO was established in September 2012 to develop a programme focusing on enhancing the resilience of coastal socio-ecological systems in the Western Indian Ocean region. This programme builds on the experiences of the Mangroves for the Future initiative established by the IUCN Asia Regional Office (ARO) and UNDP in 2006.

The Programme is geared towards enhancing the resilience of coastal socio-ecological systems in the Western Indian Ocean. It adopts a “ridge to reef” approach, and creates an enabling framework for promoting innovations, as well as strengthening coordination and synergies between multiple sectors, stakeholders and initiatives. The Programme has three focus areas aimed at: a) Consolidating and generating new knowledge; b) Applying and scaling up best practices on the ground; c) Influencing Policy and Institutional Frameworks; and d) Establishing mechanisms to ensure sustainability over the long term.

Development of the Programme was informed by a detailed situation analysis prepared by the development partners. The situation analysis comprises of two parts: i) an ecological and socio-economic in depth assessment of factors affecting the resilience of coastal systems in eastern Africa and ii) an assessment of institutional structures that support the management of coastal systems.