Mangroves are invaluable for fuel, fishing, climate change, disaster protection and tourism, but are rarely valued and protected appropriately. We spoke to Romy Chevallier, a researcher with SAIIA’s Governance of Africa’s Resources Programme who has recently been to Mozambique to conduct field research on mangroves, about this rare and misunderstood resource.
We asked her:
- What are mangrove forests and why are they important?
- How do local communities in mangrove areas benefit from them?
- Why are mangroves under threat, and how might we protect and conserve them?
- During your work in the field, were the communities you met with aware of their role in protecting mangroves?
Download Romy Chevallier’s Research Report on Mangroves: Balancing Development and Coastal Conservation: Mangroves in Mozambique
