The Comoros Archipelago

Beach in Mohéli, Comoros@Nourddine Mirhani

Objectives

Spacial and scenario analysis for the protected marine area coastline, in a context of coastal risk, macro-waste pollution and catchment basin dynamics (Comoros)

Students and local managers will use a set of methodologies to diagnose the territory in relation to island issues (coastline erosion, waste management, preservation of fishery resources, etc.)

Comparing visions of the future of the territories (local aspirations, public policy projects, private sector projects) and building territorial prospective scenarios, sharing with the different actors and searching for consensual scenarios

Shared knowledge of laws related to resource and coastal management

Tools and approaches

Participatory coastal observatory

Analysis of stakeholders perception by cognitive maps and graphs

Didactic coastal spatial planning and forward-looking strategies

Ecological reef restoration

Legal tutorial 

Training of the marine park eco-guards, Mohéli, Comoros     @N. Mirhani

What's new?

October 2022

Participation of the Comoros team in the 12th Western Indian Ocean Marine Association symposium, in Port Elizabeth, from October 10 to 15, 2022. 

Two posters will be presented:

Monitoring coastal vulnerability to marine erosion in Comoros

Nourddine Mirhani (CUP, Univ. of Comoros), Matthieu Le Duff(Univ. center in Mayotte), Yann Mercky (Univ. center in Mayotte), Espérance Cillaurren (IRD, UMR Espace Dev) et Gilbert David (IRD, UMR Espace Dev)

 > Accéder au résumé


How to manage marine biodiversity by integrating a Vague notion? Ecosystem services under the constraint of social representations and field realities in the Comoros

Nassim Said Abdallah (Univ. de la Réunion), Gilbert David (IRD, UMR Espace Dev)

 > Accéder au résumé

Monitoring of the profile of Mtsangani Sima beach by topometer measurements @ Nourddine Mirhani.

June 2022

The participatory observatory of coastal vulnerability to marine erosion in the Comoros: status of activities

Coastal erosion is one of the major challenges facing the Comoros. In order to anticipate the consequences, the DiDEM project deploys methods, tools and trainings and supports Comorian partners to set up a coastal erosion monitoring mechanism in a participatory observatory approach.

#CoastalErosion #ParticipatoryObservatory #Comoros

June 2022

Status of the coastal erosion observatory

A series of tutorials for coastal erosion monitoring, by Matthieu Le Duff

Characterize longshore drift using a simplified protocol (French only)

How to build a topometer (French only)

How to build the reference network for coastal erosion monitoring (French only)

How to use a topometer (French only)

The legal tutorial: a tool dedicated to the protection of biodiversity, habitats and natural resources in the Union of Comoros

The Union of Comoros has a set of laws and regulations that constitute an efficient lever for the protection of biodiversity, natural habitats and the sustainable management of its natural resources.

The goal of the tutorial is to familiarise civil society with its rights and duties regarding the protection and sustainable management of its natural environment.

#LegalTutorial #EnvironmentProtection #Comoros

> Discover the Legal Tutorial

August 2021

Coastal environment at the center of the dialogue Sciences-Decision makers in Comoros

On 12 August, the President of the Republic of the Comoros, the Governor of Anjouan and the Minister of Environment of the Comoros launched in Anjouan the DIDEM project site in Comoros in the presence of a large assembly including almost the entire Government of the Union and the Executive of the Autonomous Island of Anjouan, the Speaker of the National Assembly and the deputies, the Governors and mayors, the representatives of the Governorate of Mohéli, the National Network of Protected Areas, NGOs, associations and the House of Civil Society Organizations (MOSC).

Launch of the participatory observatory on vulnerability of the Anjouan and Mohéli coasts to erosion

During its stay in the Comoros in August 2021, the DiDEM team specializing in islands and archipelagos of Comoros, did the groundwork for the launch of the observatory on vulnerability of Anjouan and Mohéli coasts to erosion. 

Installation of the GPS markers, Mohéli, Comoros @Nourddine Mirhani

Context

Connectivity between catchments and marine protected areas (MPAs) is particularly important in the islands of the Western Indian Ocean due to the steep slopes in the reef MPAs which are located under the water influences of neighboring estuaries, or in the coastal waters of an island or archipelago under estuarine influence.

Anjouan and Mohéli, which belong to the Comoros archipelago, are located in the middle of the northern part of the Mozambique Channel. These islands originate from the same hotspot (currently embodied by the Karthala volcano on the island of Grande Comores) and are the only archipelagic workshop sub-area enclosed between two large lands, the African continent on one side and Madagascar on the other.

On both workshop zones, DIDEM benefits from the results of the MOZALINK project implemented by the UMR Espace-Dev and funded by WIOMSA

Team

Coordination

Gilbert David (IRD), islands geographer des îles and coastal socio-economist

Nourddine Mirhani, geographer of the island environment

Scientifique support

Espérance Cillaurren (IRD), fisheries biologist & environmental lawyer

Matthieu Le Duff (CUFR), risk geographer and coastal geomorphologist

Aurore Léocadie (IRD), ecologist and geographer of the marine environment

Yann Mercky (CUFR)

Students

PhD thesis : Aurore Léocadie & Said Abdallah Nassim

1 masters student (to be recruited)

Partners

Parc national de Shishiwani

Comoros

Direction de l’environnement d’Anjouan

Comoros

Gouvernorat de Mohéli

Comoros