Signs of an elephant passing through Angoche District

In mid February, a surprising call came in from local rangers- an elephant was making its way through Angoche District! Elephants, lions, leopards and other wildlife used to be abundant in Mozambique, but hunting during colonial times and during the civil war decimated the wildlife population, and only a few reserves are currently home to big game. But the residents of Nampula province, and Angoche district in particular, have not encountered elephants in recent memory. In the community of Maiva, where the elephant spent about 6 hours wandering through the forest and throughout local farms, Borlito Atipo said, “I am used to seeing elephants only in books, so that is how I knew what it was.” For Borolito and the other residents of Maiva, the elephant sighting was quite a shock that caused fear and confusion. No one in the community had ever seen an elephant, so they were unsure how to interact with it and what dangers it posed to both them and their crops. 

Map of the area in Angoche District where the elephant passed

           The Director of Serviços Distritais de Actividades Economicos (District Services for Economic Activities, which includes fisheries, tourism, and wildlife) told a local leader in Maiva that “We need to see if it is still in the district so that we can avoid any problems between the elephant and the population.” Avoiding these conflicts between humans and wildlife was the main objective as the Director of SDAE, a ranger, and 2 WWF staff followed the elephant´s path across the district, stopping in Maiva, Namaponda, Nametoria, and eventually making its way into thePotoneSacredForest. The team went out to assess any damage done by the elephant and to talk with the community about the ultimate goal of creating an environment of coexistence with the rare visitor. Unfortunately, the Director met with one man he defined as a “victim of conflict between man and animal,” Ali Konkwe, who was stabbed in the thigh by the tusk of the elephant that he encountered while walking back from his farm. Ali was taken to the hospital to have his wound cleaned and dressed and is expected to recover quickly, but the interaction scared the Namaponda resident who himself had never come face to face with an elephant.

Ali Konkwe recovers at home in Namaponda after his first encounter with an elephant

            The rare events taking place in the project area highlight the tension that can exist between humans and wildlife living in the same area. Rangers and other WWF staff are going out to talk to communities about the importance of coexistence and finding a safe and manageable way to let elephants and other animals share the same resources and space as humans. As of now, the elephant is continuing its trek through Nampula and may enter Zambézia province to the south. This was a rare, but extremely exciting, chain of events for all the staff of the Primeiras e Segunads program.

Directors of CARE and WWF Mozambique signing memorandum officially recognizing the Alliance in Mozambique

In February the Country Directors of both CARE and WWF Mozambique paid a visit to Angoche to see the Primeiras e Segundas Program. Along with Dan Mullins, head of the CARE-WWF Alliance Program, and Karen Luz, WWF Senior Advisor, the group sat down with staff from Angoche, Moma, and Pebane to get an update about the progress being made in the many ongoing projects happening across the three districts. Project Officers from the marine, land, and agriculture sectors gave a presentation about developments in the field and plans for this year and beyond. The Country Directors spoke to all staff members about the importance of this powerful Alliance and the unique opportunity they have to be a part of the merging of two global organizations towards a unified cause. They also took advantage of their trip to Angoche to sign into effect a memorandum officially recognizing the partnership between WWF and CARE in the Primeiras e Segundas program, making it one of only three places in the world where the Alliance is currently operating (the other two are in Nepal and Peru).With the signatures in place, some of the staff were overheard talking about the document as a symbol of the coming together of CARE and WWF in the Primeiras e Segundas not as two large institutions working side by side, but as a unified entity- the Alliance.

Rene Celaya (Country Director of CARE), Florencio Marerua (Country Director of WWF), Dan, Karen, and Program Officers from the three districts took a visit out to the field to see one of the Farmer Field Schools in action. The extensionist and demonstrator (who are responsible for teaching the new farming methods) as well as the president of the Association “Futuros Melhores” (Better Futures) met the group in the community of Namizope. The group was able to see firsthand the progress of the fields planted over the last 2 months. The president excitedly explained that the practice of mulching (covering the field with cuttings) had significantly helped their crops by inhibiting the moisture from evaporating. He bent down to pick up some soil from the plot using mulching to show that even though it has not rained in a couple of weeks, the soil is still damp. Then he went across to another section that did not use mulching to show that the soil there was dry and that the new plants were already turning yellow. The demonstrator said that mulching is a simple tip that many people in the community of Namizope, even those not participating directly in Farmer Field School, have already adopted.

Meeting with the community of Namizope

The group then sat down with members of the community of Namizope, some who are participating in associations supported by the Alliance and some who are not. Dan posed the question to the group for those who are not currently in an association, why not? The response was that many were waiting to see results, but with the progress in Farmer Field Schools and the mangrove committees, many more are planning on joining now. Florencio told the group that his visit to Namizope had both “filled his stomach and his eyes” and that he was really happy to see the projects in action. A woman stood up and shared that the farming techniques she has learned through the program are producing great results. A man raised his hand to reiterate that he is using conservation agriculture techniques in his personal farm also. At the end of the trip, the group headed back to Angoche with a renewed sense of what progress is really be made in the field and also ideas for how to better integrate all aspects of the Primeiras e Segundas program in communities like Namizope.

The entire staff of the Primeiras e Segundas program in northern Mozambique was happy to host our visiting Country Directors, WWF Senior Advisor, and Program Director to show the many ongoing projects underway. The trip reiterated the strength of the Alliance and the important work that CARE and WWF are undertaking together.

Marcos explains land rights to a community in Potone Forest

Our leading terrestrial officer here in Angoche, Marcos Assane, asked community members of Ntiri “What is going to happen in the future if we don’t participate, take part in the control of, and monitor the sustainable use of our natural resources?” The community of Ntiri lies within the boundaries of the Potone Sacred Forest in Nampula, northern Mozambique. Traditionally it was feared that cutting trees in this area would bring about bad spirits, so the forest was seen as an untouchable area that was essential to the well-being of individuals and the community as a whole. Potone forest has also long been recognized for its wealth of medicinal plants used in the treatment of mentally and physically ill people from the region. But because of Mozambique’s history of civil war and migrations, and due to increasingly scarce resources, new populations moved to Potone who did not know or respect the traditional rules of preservation. Forests were, and continue to be, cut down to make room for farm land. Fires lit to clear land in preparation for cultivation and to assist with hunting ravage the forest with major loss to habitat and species biodiversity over time. In response to these threats, the CARE-WWF Alliance is helping to empower the communities of Potone through working with them to acquire land titles, building their institutional capacity, increasing their agricultural productivity, building their capacity to sustainably manage natural resources and by introducing non-extractive enterprises such as api-culture. Towards this end, Marcos along with other Alliance staff held meetings in all the communities of Potone to introduce the process of acquiring these community land titles. Strong and clear rights, including land tenure, are a major incentive for communities to invest in long term management of natural resources.. In Mozambique, once communities acquire land title only mining concessions can override that title, and so unless important minerals are found beneath their soils, the titles allow the communities to defend against and/or negotiate with investors. Working with local community leaders, government and other partners, the Alliance is bringing together people who have the knowledge, experience, and vested interest in the Potone area. The goal for the Potone project is to establish a community forest valued for historical, cultural and environmental importance, and that with good management will provide environmental services to the traditional owners and others into the future.

The president of an association in Namizope shows off cassava plants growing using the mulching technique learned in Farmer Field School

Another exciting initiative taking place in the Primeiras e Segundas program is Farmer Field Schools. The idea is that local farmers can learn new techniques by actually experimenting with them and seeing the results for themselves. The communal plot is divided up and sections are planted to act as an experiment, for example showing which cassava strains produce the most leaves and largest tubers, which plants are better adapted locally and more resistant to disease, if planting nitrogen fixing legumes alongside the cassava increases production, and whether spacing and use of mulch has any impact. The farming associations work together with a local demonstrator and project field extensionist to prepare the field and to plant each section according to the overall plan. This way they can compare side-by-side which techniques are working and which they want to then adopt in their personal fields. The president of the association in Kopa, Namaponda said that she’s excited to see if the new things they’ve learned will produce more than the farming techniques that they normally use. All the participants in Kopa are anxiously awaiting the results to see if what they are learning in Farmer Field School is something that they can take back and teach to their families and neighbors. As one participant in the community of Namizope said “We have learned a lot already [in Farmer Field School] and we want to learn more.”

Map showing a mosaic early burning pattern in Potone Forest from the July 2011 campaign.

In the areas where early burning was conducted (in parts of the forest where hot fires had prevailed in previous years), little or no new destruction of tree saplings was evident. In addition, the recovery of adult trees and the herbaceous layer was clearly in progress. Grass was also recovering, providing food for grazers

Robin Beatty explains how tree saplings are affected by fire.

late in the dry season when food was scarce. Robin pointed out scars at the bases of larger trees to demonstrate how over time regular hot fires eventually burn through the tree, destroying it in the process.

In comparison, in areas that were not burnt during the campaign but instead experienced late hot fires, it was evident that many trees had been completely destroyed with others suffering significant damage, and that the herbaceous layer had also been significantly impacted.  While some recovery of the physiognomy or structure of the forest is possible after such an impact, without early burning interventions the tendency is towards less trees and more grass, with increasing damage to the herbaceous layer, soil and biodiversity. In addition the capacity of the forest to sequester carbon is significantly decreased.

Forest structure after experiencing late, hot and uncontrolled wildfire (photograph was taken directly across the road from where the previous pictures were taken and where the early burning campaign was conducted).

Over a period of decades, this repetitive fire regime will homogenize local ecosystems, reducing spatial and temporal habitat variability. Reducing habitat diversity leads to reduced overall biodiversity and ultimately the services the forest can provide.

Trees destroyed after late, hot and uncontrolled wildlife.

Map showing the proposed Potone Reserve.

Once fires are started, however, no one controls them. When fires are started at the end of the dry season in September or October, dry vegetation acts like fuel. A fire started to clear one acre can quickly engulf hundreds of thousands of acres, destroying important plants and trees, killing animals, and harming the structure of the soil.

The solution to this problem is straightforward: carefully managed controlled burns between April and July, shortly after the end of the rainy season. Such burns allow local people to meet their needs, while preventing uncontrolled fires that needlessly destroy vital forest habitat.

Few local people are aware of the damage done by large uncontrolled burns, and even fewer understand how to carry out a controlled burning. The problem is compounded by fragmented and inconsistent fire management legislation and policies that do not adequately address the appropriate use of controlled burning, particularly on communal land. Limited government capacity and weakened traditional institutions have also contributed to a lack of understanding of fire management.

It is estimated that the majority of Potone Reserve and Gile Reserve (a long established partial reserve within the overall Primeiras e Segundas proposed partial reserve) are burned every season, with most fires initiated when farmers are preparing their land for the monsoonal rains. Over more than a 30 year period, this repetitive fire regime has homogenized local ecosystems, reducing spatial and temporal habitat variability. Reduced habitat diversity leads to reduced overall biodiversity. For example, proportions of the ecosystem (flora and fauna) unsuited to high intensity fires have decreased in abundance and distribution. High intensity fires also contribute to greater greenhouse gas emissions.

In response, the CARE-WWF Alliance initiated an Integrated Fire Management Project in the proposed community-based Potone Reserve from 11 July to 19 July 2011. The overall objective is to manage wildfires, land-use and environment to maximize benefits of the Reserve for the community. The approach is based on using controlled burning to integrate existing community skills, knowledge and institutional structures with sustainable fire management strategies and ecological requirements. The objectives of this Project Introduction were to:

1. Introduce and demonstrate fire management activities to the community, reserve rangers and government stakeholders;

2. Commence fire management training of the community, reserve rangers and government stakeholders; and

3. Implement controlled mosaic pattern burning in the reserve to minimize the occurrence and extent of uncontrolled wildfires, enhance land use and maintain ecological processes.

321 Fire consultant Robin Beatty and Alliance staff facilitating the introduction workshop.

This first attempt at fire management was a great success. Over 75 people participated including men and women leaders from nine communities in and around Potone forest and the Potone Reserve Association, forestry representatives from the District Department for Economic Activities (SDAE), Angoche Bombeiros (fire brigade), CARE-WWF Alliance staff, and rangers from both Potone Reserve and Gile Reserve.

Traditional slash and burn, or swidden agriculture, had a place in the past when local population density was low and resources were plentiful. When soil fertility declined in one area, farmers were able to abandon a field and move to new, more fertile areas. Exhausted soil had three or four years to recover before farmers returned to it. Burning a newly cleared field releases key elements important to plant growth such as potassium and nitrogen, as well as other trace minerals. However, with so little coastal forest remaining, this practice is considered particularly destructive and ultimately unsustainable.

To address this problem, the Alliance has been promoting Conservation Agriculture (CA) in the target area. One of the key principles of CA is that through application of locally appropriate interventions, a farmer can improve soil quality and water retention without shifting the farm each year.

The potential impact of this new approach is clear: when more farmers adopt CA techniques, soil fertility and productivity increase over a much longer period on a specific piece of land. This reduces the need to move onto new fields and, theoretically, results in less encroachment on remaining natural forests. Combined with new fire management techniques, CA techniques can help the community better utilize and protect the environment on which their livelihoods are based.

Running a burn line along the trail to Namizope Community.

Based on holistic management principles, the Potone Reserve Integrated Fire Management Project combines traditional burning practices with contemporary land use and environmental requirements. Land use productivity and sustainability is enhanced through use of controlled burning to improve grazing, natural product harvesting and agriculture. The timing, intensity and frequency of burning is determined by specific land use objectives in specific areas. Typically implemented in the early dry season (April – July), controlled burns create an extensive mosaic burn pattern. This minimizes the occurrence and extent of wildfires by reducing and fragmenting fuel loads. Infrastructure and sensitive resource areas are protected by strategic reduction of fuel loads around these assets. The environment is enhanced through reduction of fire intensity and diversification of fire regimes to enhance habitat and biological diversity.

By controlling when, where and how fires occur, rangers and communities minimize negative effects of fire while maximizing the benefits. Extensive knowledge of the area, and of how fires behave, allow for safe and efficient controlled burning is achieved with minimal equipment.

Reserve Rangers clearing growth from around community farms (Machambas).

The next step in the development of the Integrated Fire Management Project will be to continue to work with the community leaders to develop a Fire Management Plan for Potone Reserve that meets their objectives and the objectives of the proposed Primeiras e Segundas Reserve. The Alliance recently secured funding from Iniciativa para Terras Comunitarias (iTC), a Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) funded operation, allowing us to help nine communities in and around the Potone Reserve legally secure their land rights, while also supporting sustainable development in these areas. This will enable the continued development of the area. The funding will also allow the project to buy important equipment such as motorbikes, drip torches, GPS tracksticks and camera traps, as well as develop of infrastructure such as roads and ranger stations. It will also allow for the first dedicated capacity building program to enable the local leaders to effectively manage the reserve as an integral part of the overall proposed Primeiras e Segundas Reserve.

A well earned meal at the end of a days hard work.

MOMS (Management Oriented Monitoring System) consists of simple forms used by local community rangers to keep track of events such as wildlife sightings.

M&E.

Those two letters alone can send shivers down the spine of project managers and project staff all over the world, conjuring up scary images of time-consuming research and complex data analysis that means little if anything to the communities in which the projects are being implemented.

But in the Primeiras & Segundas Project, community members themselves are taking part in the monitoring and evaluation process, and finding it to be not so scary after all.

It’s now been over a year since about five dozen local fishermen and farmers from Angoche, Moma, and Pebane districts received training in a participatory data collection system known as MOMS (Management Oriented Monitoring System), which is integrated into their work as community rangers, or fiscais, and feeds directly into the Primeiras & Segundas Project monitoring and evaluation program.

Bernardo Cachimo, chefe dos fiscais, shows off one of the forms.

Adapted from the Event Book System that WWF first developed for use in Namibia, MOMS consists of about a half dozen simple forms on which the local rangers can record things that happen from day to day: sightings of endangered animals, fires set by local farmers that spiral out of control, incidences of illegal cutting of mangrove trees, and a variety of other events.  At the end of each month, these events are tabulated and the results shared with the P&S staff, who incorporate it into the rest of the M&E system.

Bernardo Cachimo, the head of the fiscais and a native of Angoche, acknowledges that getting the monitoring system off the ground took a bit of time and effort.  “We really had to sit with the fiscais and help them learn how to fill in the forms.  But now they can do it themselves,” he explained.

The fiscais take their M&E role just as seriously as their other work.  Charamatane Momade, one of the fiscais who has taken on the role of MOMS representative, stresses the importance of having hard data available to back up their sensitization activities with local communities, particularly when it comes to endangered species.

Charamatane Momade (at right), the ranger who oversees MOMS implementation, visits the ranger post at Murussa, where Manuel Mattias Caninela does a fantastic job with the data collection even though transportation challenges make it hard for his supervisors to visit as often as they'd like.

“For example,” he offered, “in Tamole [a local beach community] people used to use the sea turtle eggs and the turtles.  We’ve taught them that they should return them to the water, and now they’re doing that a lot more, and now we’re seeing more turtles recorded in MOMS, so we can tell people it’s working.”

Of course, the system still has room for improvement.  The fiscais are still limited in their reporting ability by the lack of equipment such as GPS systems, which would help them identify the locations of wildlife sightings and other events more accurately.  They could also use more frequent support – Mr. Cachimo wishes that he could get out to each post a lot more often to check in with all of the rangers on a regular basis, but transportation is a challenge.

The next step in MOMS is to start involving the fiscais and the local communities in more of the data analysis.  By this point, the system has been in place long enough to start seeing some trends in the data, and the P&S Project has plans to introduce a simple graphing method at each ranger post that will help the fiscais start to identify the trends themselves.  Not only does this give the communities local ownership of the data, but it will also help to alert them to negative trends that might develop over time so that they can identify and implement solutions that make sense for them.

Marcos Assane and Arlinda Beirão, M&E officers for the P&S Project, visit a ranger station in the Potone Sacred Forest with Mr. Momade. The data collected by the fiscais play a key role in project M&E.

Will MOMS completely replace other forms of M&E in the Primeiras e Segundas Project?  Well, maybe not, but it definitely has an increasing role to play as the project moves into its next phase and more of the management responsibilities are shifted to local community members.

“The system is welcomed,” Mr. Cachimo concludes.  “It’s brought us a lot of new experience.  We hope that it stays forever and helps us continue to learn.”

About the author: Domingos Ossufo was born in Angoche but spent many of his 40 years in other locations – including several years in the former East Germany. Father of three, Domingos began working for CARE in 1998, first as a field extensionist and then as an assistant district supervisor. He finally returned to his hometown in 2008 to supervise the marketing and associations component of the P&S Project. In January of this year his role changed again; he is now working with the DIPECHO Project (in conjunction with P&S) as an Officer for Disaster Risk Reduction on the Koti Islands off the coast of Angoche. In his spare time, Domingos is studying geography through the distance learning program at the Catholic University of Mozambique.

Our third story features a man of many talents whose determination to implement the P&S Project techniques has led his market and savings association to unprecedented levels of success. Though he was also a participant in conservation agriculture trainings (see Objective 1), his accomplishments most closely tie into Objective 3: To improve marketing and stimulate the development of marketing associations so that producers realize more value for their products. The story was written by Domingos Ossufo (see profile at left), edited and translated by Rachel Mason.

Success Story: Essiaca Abacar Mussa, Mobilizer for Market and Credit Associations

By Domingos Ossufo, P&S Staff

Essiaca Abacar Mussa, 47, is married with four children, all of whom are in school.  A farmer, tailor, and member of Ochucuru Mali – an association of agricultural producers in the community of Napuala – he began his collaboration with the Primeiras & Segundas Project in 2009.

When the Project was first presented to the communities, the people of Napuala, in the Administrative Post of Namaponda, Angoche District, chose Essiaca to serve as their community mobilizer – a volunteer  who receives extra trainings to reinforce the methods introduced by the project.

Highly motivated to succeed, Essiaca quickly began to mobilize other community members to join together and create associations and savings groups.  He admits that it was not an easy task to get people to unite around a single objective, but as he took his role as a volunteer mobilizer seriously and wanted the project to continue working in his community, he did whatever he could to get the project activities implemented.

With Essiaca’s commitment and perseverence, as well as that of several other dedicated community members, nine associations have been successfully formed in Napuala.  Five of these have already succeeded in gaining legal recognition – a lengthy process that requires groups to be well organized.  What’s more, the small groups have been further aggregated into an umbrella organization, known as the Napuala Forum, with various members trained by the project in commercialization and association work. This component is essential to guarantee the sustainability of the associations as the project technicians strategically decrease their level of direct support, and it already seems to be paying off through the continuation of activities in the associations that make up the Napuala Forum.

Within his own association and savings group, Essiaca occupies the position of treasurer.  He feels that with the earnings that they have brought in, a significant change is taking place in his life and the lives of his neighbors.  Since the project began working in the community, with the assistance of AENA [the local NGO in charge of conservation agriculture activities], not only were various groups and associations were formed, but demonstration fields for improved methods of conserving the soil have also helped the community to see the advantages of conservation agriculture in terms of increased production.

Essiaca with his wife, son, and sewing machine

As an example, Essiaca points to the benefits these trainings have brought to his own life.
“In this agricultural season, I grew more than usual and earned more by selling many products only after identifying good prices, and I increased the value of my savings, which is contributing in an encouraging way to improving my life.”

Essiaca used his savings this year for both immediate improvements in his life as well as some investment that will pay off more in the future. “For example,” he explained, “I was able to build my house with a zinc roof that I got for a total of 18,500 meticais [approx. US$560], and I bought a mattress in Nampula for 4,450 meticais [approx. US$135], but I also bought two cows for 27,600 meticais [approx. US$836].”

Although he may not have been left with much money after such large investments this year, Essiaca is not worried about the future.  “I’m still participating in the savings group with the plan that next season I’ll buy a motorbike that can serve as transportation for my family, and I always have a stock of food in storage.  In general, I would say that the presence of the Project has helped me grow.”

About the author: Cremildo Mario Armando, 28, is the WWF Marine Officer for the Primeiras & Segundas Project. Born in Maxixe in Inhambane Province, far away both physically and culturally from the P&S zone, Cremildo has already accomplished a great deal in less than two years with the Project, overseeing the management of all marine and coastal resources in Angoche, Moma, and Pebane districts. With a bachelor’s degree in marine biology already behind him, Cremildo aspires to greater academic achievements, hoping to eventually apply his work with the P&S Project toward a master’s degree in the same field.

The second story in our series relates directly to the second objective of Phase I of the Primeiras & Segundas Project: To improve coastal management, thereby increasing marine ecosystem productivity. Rather than focusing on a specific individual who has benefited from the P&S activities, this story shows what is possible when multiple groups of people at various levels – from poor local fishermen to the District government – come together around a single goal.  The story was written by Cremildo Armando (see profile at left), edited and translated by Rachel Mason.

Success Story: Marine Sanctuaries in Moma

By Cremildo Armando, P&S Staff

It’s been almost exactly one year since the establishment of two marine sanctuaries in the district of Moma, and the verdict is already in: this initiative has been a tremendous success.

The creation of the sanctuaries, located within the large Moma estuary near the communities of Thapua and Corane, was the direct result of a participatory process involving community members, P&S Project staff, and local government officials.  During the Rapid Rural Appraisal conducted at the initiation of the Project, one of the concerns raised by communities was the declining quantity and size of fish near the major fishing centers, due in part to over-fishing and the frequent capture of juvenile fish that had not had a chance to reproduce. The Project proposed establishing sanctuaries, or no-fishing zones, where the fish would be able to grow larger and reproduce freely, leading to spill-over effects that would improve fishermen’s catches outside of the boundaries of the sanctuaries.  Several of the communities agreed to give it a try.

Proposed sites for marine sanctuaries were identified by the communities themselves through a participatory process.  The P&S technical team then visited these sites together with the community leaders and government officials, and additional community meetings were held to make sure that everyone was on the same page and to work out how the sites would be managed.  Then in late February of 2010, buoys were placed to demarcate the boundaries and a ceremony was held to formally present the Thapua and Corane Marine Sanctuaries to the communities.  All fishing activities within the boundaries ceased, and volunteer community rangers set up a rotational schedule to make sure the policy was observed, along with the official Community Fishing Council rangers (subsidized by the P&S Project) who also conduct monitoring on the more remote Primeiras and Segundas Islands.

A buoy marking the boundary of the Thapua sanctuary

Six months later, technical staff from the P&S Project and the National Institute for Fisheries Investigation visited the sites, along with the sanctuary rangers and leaders from the Moma Fishing Association and the local CCP, or Community Fishing Council, to conduct a monitoring exercise in the zone around the sanctuaries with the aim of assessing the quantity and quality of fish both in and near the sanctuaries.  The staff noted a high level of satisfaction on the faces of the fishermen as the sampling was done.  The locals already knew what results the exercise would yield: they claimed they’d already observed more fish swimming in the waters around the sanctuaries than they’d seen in the previous ten years.

“Some species, like dolphins, which we haven’t seen around here much since before the war, now they’re coming back,” noted Eurico Abudo Napale, a volunteer ranger and lifelong fisherman.  “The dolphins know that there are now more fish in this area, and that’s their primary source of food,” he explained.

Eurico Napale, volunteer community ranger, points to the return of dolphins as a good sign that there are now more fish in the area.

Mr. Napale, a resident of Corane, takes his role as community ranger very seriously.  In exchange for spending some of his free time monitoring the sanctuaries with the project boat, he and the other volunteer rangers received a pair of three-ply fishing nets to fish in the areas around the sanctuaries.  He was more than satisfied with this arrangement, as the net and increased fish from sanctuary spill-over are helping him feed his four children.  Providing for his family has also been made easier by his involvement with another component of the P&S Project, the conservation agriculture activities featured in last week’s success story.  Like most fishermen in the area, Mr. Napale doesn’t rely exclusively on the bounty of the sea and also maintains a small farm plot.  His one hectare of mostly cassava has become more productive since the start of the project activities – a good example of how the integrated approach of the P&S Project can influence people’s lives across different sectors.

Meanwhile, the results of the sampling activity confirmed what the local fishermen already knew:  after only six months, there was a significant difference in both the size of fish and the number of species found inside the sanctuaries compared with the sample taken outside the sanctuaries – with more species and bigger fish found within the protected area, of course.

The establishment of the sanctuaries was the result of cooperation among many partners, including the Moma Fishing Association (of which João Tito Abacar, at left, is the secretary), the Community Fishing Council (of which Aliti Atumane, at right, is the president), as well as P&S Project staff (middle), government officials, and many local fishermen.

Only one year after the sanctuaries were declared, most of the area’s fishermen are already fully convinced of the benefits.  Ussein Daniel, one of the CCP rangers who also patrols the Primeiras and Segundas islands, claims that his shifts in the sanctuaries are the easiest part of the job.  “The fishermen here respect the sanctuaries so we never catch anyone fishing here,” he explained, although João Tito Abacar, the secretary of the Moma Fishing Association, pointed out that there have been some cases of people sneaking into the sanctuaries at night, when there is no patrolling.  “They know it’s wrong, it’s like stealing fish,” explained Mr. Abacar, “That’s why they only do it at night.”  The Project is planning to equip some of the patrol boats with lights so that additional monitoring can take place at night.

The communities are so pleased with the results of the first two sanctuaries that they are already asking for assistance in establishing more.  Aliti Atumane, president of the Moma Center CCP, explained that the communities are capable of identifying additional areas to protect without any input from the P&S Project, but they don’t have the money to provide the buoys for the boundaries or the boats for monitoring.

“We all think it’s a good idea, because we’re already seeing the results,” Mr. Atumane said.  “For example, there’s a fish that we call ncupucupu [Drepane longimana; concertina fish].  We hadn’t seen it for years, we thought it was gone for good.”  He smiled as he delivered the punch line.  “Now it’s back!”

About the Author: Arlinda Beirão, 35, a native of Zambézia Province, is a single mother of three. In a country where female heads of household usually find themselves in positions of low social status, Arlinda has overcome the odds with her tenacity, hard work, and can-do attitude. An employee of CARE since 1998, Arlinda has already occupied a number of positions: extensionist, assistant district supervisor, and now Conservation Agriculture Officer for the P&S Project. Despite her full time employment and full time motherhood, Arlinda still manages to find a few extra hours each week to devote to her continuing education: she is currently enrolled in a distance learning program through the Catholic University of Mozambique, where she is pursuing a degree in biology and nutrition.

To kick off the series, we begin with a story about Abilio Alte Julmeia, whose participation in conservation agriculture trainings is a fantastic example of what we were hoping to accomplish through Objective 1: To improve the quality and quantity of foodstuffs produced by the population while maintaining or improving ecosystem productivity. The story was written by Arlinda Beirão (see profile at left), edited and translated by Rachel Mason.

Success Story: Abilio Alte Julmeia, Community Demonstrator for Agricultural Techniques

By: Arlinda Beirão, P&S Project Staff

At 40 years of age, Abilio Alte Julmeia has already tried a wide variety of fishing and agricultural activities to support his wife and seven children.

A native of Pilivili – a remote coastal village in Moma District – Mr. Julmeia is known in his community for his creativity and drive. Every year, in addition to sowing the usual agricultural crops, Mr. Julmeia would also plant income-generating trees such as coconut palms, orange trees, and guava trees, albeit with limited success. He also maintains a small boat, which he uses for line fishing when he has the time.

When the Primeiras & Segundas Project began activities in 2008, Mr. Julmeia’s community requested technical assistance from the project. The project, in turn, asked the community to choose a local volunteer to receive training to help promote the conservation agriculture practices that the project’s local implementing organization, AENA, would introduce.

Naturally, the community chose Mr. Julmeia for his distinctive dedication, vision, and leadership skills.

Through his participation in this project, Mr. Julmeia has learned to help his community by spreading the message about good techniques and practices to ten groups of producers, with a total of about 160 participants engaged in activities of agricultural production and fishing. Many of the groups are in the process of creating a formal structure so that they can become legally recognized associations.

Following P&S Project trainings, Mr. Julmeia now teaches people to reuse old plastic bags for sowing the seeds of fruit trees, which makes transplanting the saplings much easier and more successful.

In an interview, Mr. Julmeia said, “Ever since I received my first training with the technicians, I’ve learned many things. Before, I had difficulty transplanting seedlings from a nursery, then the technicians taught me to use the plastic bags from sugar for the seeds, and that made it easier to transport them to the field and transplant them. Before, I planted coconuts and fruit trees in a disorganized manner, not using the space well, but I learned to plant them in rows and now I’m doing it that way in my farm plots. With the techniques of conservation agriculture that they taught, I now leave a grass cover around the plants, and in the last growing season it really made things easier for me because I didn’t have nearly as many problems with weeds as I used to.”

Of course, it’s not just Mr. Julemia who has benefited from the trainings. “All of the farmers who used conservation agriculture,” he explained, “covering their fields with grass mulch instead of burning them, said that their yield was greater than in the fields that they burned or those without conservation agriculture.” In addition to boosting yields and reducing labor for weeding, the reduction in burning helps preserve the surrounding forest from uncontrolled fires.

Mr. Julmeia also noted the benefits of improved post-harvest techniques. “I learned – and also taught groups – to dry their peanuts on slanted peanut racks, and those peanuts came out with a higher quality without rotting. We have problems with pests in our crops, but now we use neem [a plant that has natural insecticidal properties], which has helped reduce the pests in our crops and in storage.”

Mr. Julmeia and his family now store their grains in an improved silo that he learned to make during a training exchange visit last year.

On the topic of storage, Mr. Julmeia credits a project-sponsored experiential learning visit with further helping his community improve their techniques. “Last year, I traveled to Chiure with the project and we saw new types of silos called thethere. After I got back, I did a demonstration in my community about how to construct the silos to protect the seeds.”

While strongly committed to his role as a community demonstrator with a sincere desire to see his friends and neighbors in Pilivili strengthen their livelihood security, Mr. Julmeia nevertheless stresses the impact that the trainings have had on his own life. “In addition to helping the others in the techniques of production, I have my own fields of peanuts, cassava, and nhemba beans, in an area that totals about 3.5 hectares. With the improved production, I’ve bought new land – now I have about 15 hectares.” The land that Mr. Julmeia acquired, which was previously used for agriculture or livestock but abandoned because it was not productive enough or its owners did not have the means to sustain agricultural activities there, will soon benefit from the improved techniques that Mr. Julmeia will begin to employ there in the next growing season.

Mr. Julmeia now has about 300 coconut palms and 259 fruit trees. He also used some of his profits from the past season to rebuild his house, and his seven children no longer worry about having enough food or basic school supplies. One of his sons is enrolled in the high school in the district capital of Moma, and he is finally able to pay the monthly tuition. And, of course, he understands the value of saving of saving seeds and some of his earnings to get his family through the lean months and help him get started with the next growing season.

Looking to the future, Mr. Julmeia is starting to think big. “Right now I use a bicycle, but I’m saving up money to buy a motorbike to help me get around more easily. I’m going to increase the area of my coconut palms and fruit trees, and another farm plot that mostly has cassava will go up from two hectares to four hectares.”

“With the techniques that I’m learning,” he concluded, “I’m going to help improve my own production and also put to rest any doubts of other community members, who are now following me. As everyone starts seeing the advantages, every day more people come looking for me to explain these techniques.”

It is no small achievement to bring together for nearly a week the individuals that composed this group – all very active and successful professionals committed to the ideals of philanthropy and giving of themselves to contribute to the making of a better world.  Each of them brought unique and extremely valuable perspectives from previous experience, from business acumen,  and from the ability to see beyond the immediate to a clear common sense of being both touched and humbled by the experience.

Initial meetings in Maputo, attended by representatives from the Danish, American and French Embassies as well as the Ministry of Environment and the private sector, sparked discussion on upcoming challenges, threats and opportunities for Mozambique.  These included concerns regarding the immense coal reserves in the western part of the country possibly leading to the dredging of the Zambezi River for exportation purposes, and resulting implications including waste deposit leaching linkages with advancing climate change processes already drastically affecting Mozambique and its vulnerable environment and population.  Further issues highlighted included the lack of integrated policies to address the need to reduce pressure on highly sensitive environments, while promoting alternative income generating streams and access to markets for those people who are becoming increasingly poor and more vulnerable and growing in numbers in Mozambique.

These issues formed a “mental backdrop” for the field visits that were then carried out by the group: first to the island of Abdule Rahmane and the Maziwane village off the coast of Angoche, then to the Angoche Administration Office to participate in a feira held to demonstrate the diverse and extremely beneficial results of project interventions (soil conservation methods, use of appropriate fish nets, fish drying techniques, village savings and loans, amongst others), and finally to the Island of Ibo in the Quirimbas National Park, where the group had the chance to share in the celebration of the official demarcation of the Arrimba  no-take fishing zone initiated by community members themselves.  As the visitors joined the community celebrating the event, they were greeted by hundreds of women, men and children dancing out to the sea, singing and dancing to receive them, bestowing upon the men traditional garb, and decorating the women’s faces with musiro, the lovely sun screen mixture that heightens a woman’s beauty while protecting her face from the sun.

Conversations while aboard boats churning their way across the high seas, seated beside the camp fire, stargazing, navigating through the dark nights, or over shared food and drink centered on questions such as: What can we as the Alliance aspire to?  What can we dream but also achieve?  How do we focus on the intrinsic link between the environment and people’s needs, while ensuring a nurturing of both for the future?  How do we bring our immense wealth of skills and experience together in a way that can have the most positive impact for the many people of northern Mozambique and the beautiful yet fragile environment they inhabit?

As one of visitors later wrote, “Our experiences tested our will, our courage, our patience and our passion to believe in something greater than ourselves. The WWF and CARE Alliance speaks to the essence of that passion because we all must become more responsible caretakers of our food chain because in the end, both wildlife and people need to eat! We are our sisters and brothers keepers.”

We are working on making this vision a more articulate one – one that is bound by a ten year timeframe with achievable and realistic but visionary objectives built upon our unique premise of inter-relatedness and co-dependency.   A small team will be meeting in Maputo in early December to work on harnessing our visions and dreams into a tangible, actionable plan that resonates with our current work, the view of Mozambique’s near future on the horizon and our collective commitment and effort to support this plan.

Many thanks to one of visitors who so rightly said, “We should also thank the natural elements, because surely ocean, sand, dirt, stars and sun brought us together in a way that no conference room ever could!”

For more photos from the visit, please click here to watch the Flickr slideshow

Comments, feedback and recommendations are welcome!