History of the Kenya-Tanzania TBCA
Various regional to local efforts have been undertaken by the UNEP Nairobi Convention, WIOMSA, and other institutions to describe, understand and address transboundary issues on land, nearshore, and offshore areas in East Africa. These regional to country efforts found that transboundary management strategies and tools are needed to protect ecosystems and mitigate threats that extend multiple jurisdictions and boundaries. Whilst transboundary conservation is not new to East African countries, including Kenya and Tanzania, these efforts are mostly found in land leaving highly connected processes in the Western Indian Ocean under-protected.
In 2015, the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and the Tanzanian Marine Parks and Reserves Unit (MPRU) with support from WIOMSA undertook a study to determine the need and assess the feasibility of implementing transboundary management in the shared border of Kenya and Tanzania. This study, which culminated in a technical report, was presented and accepted as a decision in the 8th Conference of Parties of the UNEP Nairobi Convention. Decision CP8/6 supported the development and implementation of a marine transboundary conservation area (TBCA) in the Kenya and Tanzanian border to protect ecosystems and ecological processes that are vital to the livelihoods and well-being of residents in the shared region.
Succeeding decisions and efforts further reinforced the need to establish and formalise the Kenya-Tanzania TBCA, since it was accepted as a commitment under the Sustainable Development Goal 14 and firmed up support during the 9th Conference of Parties (see Decision CP9/7). To further support this endeavour, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and WIOMSA initiated a project to help develop components of the WIO MPA network, which includes developing the conservation plan and formally establishing the Kenya-Tanzania TBCA.
Current activities
Working closely with the KWS, MPRU and other partners, WIOMSA is supporting the following activities to support the development and establishment of the Kenya-Tanzania marine Transboundary Conservation Area (TBCA):
Holding regular stakeholder meetings within each country and between KWS and MPRU to:
In collaboration with government partners, the WCS and Macquarie University under the Blue Action Fund to support the development of the conservation plan for the TBCA.
