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Coastal East Africa
Improving livelihoods by conserving nature
African elephant at waterhole. Chobe National Park, Botswana.
© WWF-Canon / Martin HARVEY
Stretching for 2,900 miles, from southern Somalia to the shores of South Africa, there are few places on Earth that can match the vibrancy and diversity of life found in Coastal East Africa. The shores of Lake Malawi are home to nearly 1,000 endemic species of fish, and the Coastal Forests, Eastern Arc Mountains and Miombo woodlands are where humans live alongside the highest collection of endemic and threatened species in all of Africa. The countries here are among the poorest in the world. Livelihoods and human health are directly connected to the natural resources. Over the past 50 years, human activity has significantly altered this once pristine paradise.
Great diversity of life
The mangroves and marine ecosystems of Coastal East Africa cover an area of more than 300,000 square miles along the coasts of Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique. This Global 200 ecoregion supports a great diversity of plant and animal life, as well as some of the Indian Ocean's most diverse coral reefs, including fringing coral reefs that form continual stretches of 60 miles or more, and constitute most of the estimated total of 1,000 miles of reefs along these shores. The reefs fringing the islands of Pemba, Zanzibar and Mafia are among the finest remaining reefs in the region. Mafia Island's reefs, for example, support 350 species of fish and 40 classes of corals.
Fishermen build a fence trap on Mafia Island Marine Park in Tanzania.
© WWF-Canon / Jason RUBENS
Moving inland, the Coastal Forests, Eastern Arc Mountains and Miombo woodlands harbor unparalleled biodiversity and an abundance of aquatic and terrestrial species. The Eastern Africa Coastal Forest ecoregion is roughly 260,000 km2 in extent and takes the form of a mosaic of fragmented forest patches and other habitats stretching along the eastern coast of Africa. This global biodiversity asset is home to thousands of plants and animals that occur nowhere else on earth, including primates, birds, reptiles and amphibians.
The Eastern Arc Mountains are of global importance for their biological values and of national importance to Tanzania for their role in providing water to millions of Tanzanians and for the hydropower stations that generate more than 50% of the electricity in the country. The Eastern Arcs are home to one of the highest concentrations of threatened species in the world. The forests also store significant amounts of carbon, thus acting as a buffer against global warming and climate change.
The Ruvuma landscape of southern Tanzania and northern Mozambique contains one of the most biologically outstanding regions in Africa – covering the easterm Miombo woodlands and home to the largest population of African elephants.
The Limpopo, Zambezi, Rufiji, and Tana Rivers drain into the ocean through extensive mangrove systems. The Rufiji Delta in Tanzania is one of the most important coastal wetlands in East Africa and has a nearly 8,000 acre mangrove forest, the region's largest. The mangroves are critically important for maintaining nearby reefs and hundreds of species of fish, crabs and shrimps that depend on the forests as feeding areas and nursery grounds for their young. They also filter sedimentation from the rivers that would otherwise harm the reefs.
WWF vision: Conserve the globally-important habitats and thousands of unique species that help sustain the livelihoods of over 30 million people in Coastal East Africa.
The place. Harboring the longest unfragmented fringing reef in the world and a rich tapestry of mangrove and sea grass beds, Coastal East Africa spans 300,000 square miles, including the mountains, grasslands and woodlands in Kenya,Tanzania and Mozambique. The terrestrial region is also the source of fresh water and fertile soil for local communities.
The species. With the highest concentration of endemic animals in Africa—18,500 species of plants and animals—the coast’s waters sustain all five species of sea turtles in the Indian Ocean and 35 species of marine mammals, such as whales, dolphins and the endangered dugong. Its terrestrial habitats provide refuge for wild dogs, black rhinos, red colobus monkeys and African elephants.
The people. Although impoverished, the communities in this region have a strong cultural heritage with rich traditions. Because their livelihoods and health are directly connected to natural resources, empowering them to be intimately involved in conservation will preserve their environments and create alternate income sources.
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Climate Change | Fishing | Agriculture | Aquaculture | International Finance | Wildlife Trade
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