Reduction of the economic vulnerability of local communities

AMMCO is conscious about the fact that species-based conservation alone is not sustainable for the long-term management of aquatic megafauna species. Therefore, in addition to providing direct protection to our target species, we also endeavor to take into account the interests of local people and other stakeholders and work in close partnership with them to protect and restore habitats and mitigate anthropogenic pressures and their causes on the species. Hence, AMMCO works in close collaboration with the local communities and other stakeholders for a participative decision-making and implementation. AMMCO uses the following actions for the conservation of the aquatic megafauna:

• • Protection: We provide technical and logistical support to Conservation offices to conduct patrols and surveillance in critical habitats.

  • Good local governance: Facilitating communication, transparency and decision sharing between local people and local authorities.

  • Community-based conservation: Our conservation approach is very participative. We work with local communities to protect their interests including ‘’their’’ aquatic megafauna.

  • Alternative livelihood: Because we care about the community around our project areas, we do not just ask them to stop hunting or bycatching manatees and other marine megafauna, but we provide them with alternative sources of revenue such as bee farming and ecotourism.