Coastal area of Timor-Leste
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Timor-Leste: Sus­tain­able coasts through par­ti­cip­at­ory con­ser­va­tion

What is at issue:

The project focuses on Ma’abat, a coastal village in Manatuto District, about two hours east of Timor-Leste’s capital city, Dili. On Ma’abat’s coast, the village depends on mangroves for protection from flooding and storms, and reefs and seagrass as habitats for fish. Fishers in Ma’abat have noticed a decline in their catches and are concerned about their food security. Previous attempts to manage fisheries to promote stock recovery in Ma’abat have been unsuccessful due to low engagement in the community in designing management measures. However, the community of Ma’abat is eager to work towards a sustainable future.

What do you want to achieve in the long term?

Tara Bandu, Timor-Leste’s customary law, is increasingly used by local communities to regulate small-scale fisheries and create locally-managed marine areas (LMMAs). In Ma’abat, we will work with the community to establish Tara Bandu in Lamsana Bay, which was identified as a key fish nursery and is considered sacred land by the community. The project supports the community’s use of Tara Bandu for sustainable marine resource management, through a variety of participatory initiatives.

 

Discussing LMMA

We visited our new site in Manatuto to discuss fishing and mangrove management and monitoring, TaraBandu, and how to integrate a sacred place into a new LMMA.

What's happening now:

During this first year 2019, the project team has developed a solid foundation for the development and implementation of community-led marine management measures. The project team built positive relationships with the local authorities and created the CFM team, which will be the gateway to engaging the wider community.

In order to continue promoting trust with the community and their engagement in marine management, 2020 the project team will organise outreach activities such as film nights and mangrove planting, facilitate more exchanges with other communities using ​Tara Bandu​, and continue to support the CFM team. In parallel, the project team will continue to engage with the community leadership, both administrative and spiritual, in order to discuss how to best support the Ma’abat community in developing and implementing ​Tara Bandu.

What we have achieved:

Our biggest success 2019 has been the establishment of an all-female community fisheries monitoring group. Six women completed a training programme and are monitoring catches several times a week, collecting data on key fisheries that were identified by community members as important for their livelihood.

Our mangrove activities have also progressed very well. We have established a formal partnership and signed an MOU with KFF, the only local conservation organisation in Timor-Leste. KFF has discussed with community leadership and identified suitable sites and methods, and fieldwork should start soon.

More information:

Who has done it

Blue Ventures

Blue Ventures

Blue Ventures - Beyond Conservation

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More information

Mangroven

Man­groves – mas­ters of sur­vival on salty ground

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