Training the trainers in Tanzania

Working to fill mangrove best practice gaps in the Western Indian Ocean region, MAP conducted two community-based ecological mangrove restoration workshops in Tanga as part of the Save Our Mangroves Now! Initiative, an international project led by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Aimed at local stakeholders, the training welcomed field staff from the Tanzanian Forest Service Agency, instructors from the Forestry Training Institute Olmotonyi, and community conservation group leaders.

Through a combination of classroom theory, group work, field trips and presentations, we were able to “train the trainers” on topics vital to mangrove restoration and conservation. Besides learning about mangrove biology and ecology, participants were shown examples of species zoning, taught about the importance of hydrology and biodiversity, discussed how to map a restoration site, and addressed challenges in mudflat afforestation.