Stockholm university

Research project Managing Mangrove Ecosystem Services for Local Livelihoods and Adaptations in Tanzania

The overall aim of this project is to explore the link between mangrove ecosystem services (MES) and community livelihoods and well-being, changes in MES and associated drivers of change, adaptation options and their management in Tanzania, using the Rufiji Delta and Pangani Estuary as case studies.

Mangrove

Specifically, the aims are to (1) map and assess factors that influence on the awareness and demand of MES to local communities (2) assess the status (supply), change and trends in ES provided by mangroves, associated drivers, and the impacts of these changes on local people’s livelihood and well-being (3) explore socio-economic determinants of mangrove exploitation patterns, and effectiveness and enforcement of mangrove forest management interventions and (4) explore how communities perceive climate change, ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) strategies based on MES and other societal-based adaptation measures.

Based on field survey and literature reviews, the project shows that in order to enhance mangrove conservation and future supply of ecosystem services they provide, an improved understanding of local peoples’ priorities and preferences of MES and their importance for peoples’ livelihoods and well-being must go hand-in-hand with the development of a well-adjusted policy and practical adherence to collaborative arrangements for sustainable mangrove forest management. The project also demonstrates that the degree of awareness and reliance on MES, as well as the adaptation options taken in response to environmental stressors, is site specific, and drivers impacting on mangroves and associated services vary geographically, depending on the social-ecological context and legal frameworks instituted to protect mangrove ecosystems.

Project description

Tanzania, like many other countries where mangroves occur, is grappling with the difficulties to maintain the appropriate balance between conservation of its mangroves and the human demands on services provided by these ecosystems (Mangora, 2011; Mwansasu, 2016). As a result, mangrove degradation and loss have continued to be reported from various parts of the country and the Rufiji Delta and Pangani River Estuary which are among the areas with largest coverage of mangrove forests in the country are not exceptional (Nyangoko, 2022). Conversion of mangrove areas to rice farms, excessive cutting of mangroves for timber (Monga et al., 2018; Wagner and Sallema-Mtui, 2016), inadequate law enforcement (Monga et al., 2018; Nyangokoet al., 2021), and climate change through reduced rainfall and sea level

rises (Ellison, 2015; Punwong, 2013) are some of the drivers behind this loss. However, the impacts of this loss on local livelihoods are not well understood, signifying a call to unravel these impacts in order to rationally design measures for sustainability (Nyangoko et al., 2021).

Project members

Project managers

Håkan Berg

Universitetslektor, docent

Department of Physical Geography
Håkan Berg

Members

Håkan Berg

Universitetslektor, docent

Department of Physical Geography
Håkan Berg

Martin Gullström

Associate Professor

3 School of Natural Sciences, Technology and Environmental Studies, Södertörn University
Martin Gullström

Mwita Mangora

Associate Professor

Institute of Marine Sciences, University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Mwita Mangora

Mwanahija Shalli

Phd

Institute of Marine Sciences, University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Mwanahija Shalli

Publications

More about this project

Furthermore, while coastal communities in Tanzania have depended on mangroves for decades to gain livelihoods and well-being (Mainoya etal. 1986, Semesi 1992, 1998, Wang et al. 2003), information about the bundles of ES provided by mangroves to communities and their predictors at the local scale is not well captured (Nyangoko et al., 2021). Many of the reported local studies represent a small selection of ES, such as those traded in markets, with little emphasis on appraising intangible services from mangrove ecosystems, and hence many MES that cannot be quantified monetarily, but are equally important to support well-being of local communities are often overlooked (Nyangoko et al., 2021). In this regard, a clear understanding about the multi-functionality of mangrove landscapes and their associated ES in relation to human well-being is important for translating and integrating their benefits and preferences into decision making (Nyangoko et al., 2021). This also provide opportunity to identify key threats that affect these ecosystems and how these ecosystems together with other community-based practices can provide options for adaptations to environmental changes (Nyangoko et al., 2022).