NICE, France, Jun 13 2025 (IPS) - Just before dawn, a flotilla of wooden canoes drifts silently  through mangrove-tangled channels where roots sprout from the black mud of the lagoon. Here, at the edge between sea and forest, lies a story of restoration.

The Northern Mozambique Channel (NMC) is a stretch of water and a rich biological hotspot. Stretching along the coasts of Mozambique, Comoros, Tanzania, Madagascar, and the Seychelles, the channel holds 35 percent of the Indian Ocean’s coral reefs, tracts of mangroves, seagrass meadows, and deep-sea habitats. It is home to over 10 million coastal people whose livelihoods rely on the ecosystems.

Yet, this marvel is under siege. Climate change, land-based runoff, overfishing, coastal development, offshore drilling, and shipping traffic have degraded its vital systems. In response, the UN designated 2021–2030 as the Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, launching the World Restoration Flagships—large-scale restoration efforts that follow a shared global framework. In early June 2025, the NMC joined two other sites as a flagship region in this global initiative—a recognition of the deep, sustained conservation effort led by WWF, UNEP, FAO, governments, and local communities.

‘Such a Special Place’

On a recent call, Dr. Samantha Petersen, WWF’s leader for the Southwest Indian Ocean regional program, said, “It’s really such a special place. Highly, highly, highly connected… incredible biodiversity hotspot, with massive… human dependency from the coastal communities.”

Petersen said any restoration plan “needs to be balanced in an integrated way to deliver outcomes for people, nature, and climate.” In practice, that means blending scientific rigor with traditional knowledge—a partnership where nurseries, seedling cultivation, and local stewardship are as essential as policy frameworks and funding streams.

Mangroves at the Core

Among the most urgent work is bringing back the mangroves. These coastal forests are nursery grounds for fish that small-scale fishers depend on.

Petersen explained, “By restoring and securing those nursery grounds… we are securing food security… and livelihoods of small-scale fishers in the region.”

WWF is partnering with community organizations to actively restore approximately 15,000 hectares of mangroves, about 25–30 percent of the restorable area in the NMC—primarily through coastal community-led initiatives. Another 180,000 hectares fall under community-based stewardship, a proof of scale and ambition.

Communities dig planting holes, tend seedlings in nurseries, and monitor growth. WWF provides support: site selection guidance, technical training, materials, and help tracking success over long periods. With coherent management and investment, the project aims to restore 4.85 million hectares of paired land and seascapes by 2030 across participating nations, bringing environmental and social returns in equal measure.

Impressive Story

In ankle-deep water, where the Indian Ocean laps gently at the crumbling edge of Mozambique’s northern coast, 38-year-old Amina Langa bends low in the warm, silty water, pressing red mangrove saplings into the earth like offerings, her hands caked in mud, her expression calm but focused. The tide was creeping in, but she barely noticed. The sun was already sharp, casting long shadows on the salt-bleached sand, yet she moved with the quiet persistence of someone who has learned to listen to the rhythms of the sea.

Langa’s memories are vivid. She speaks of a childhood where the ocean sparkled with promise.

“Back then,” she says, “the nets came back heavy every time.” Her eyes drift out toward the horizon. “The water was alive.”

But that was before the years of cut mangroves, the rise of commercial shrimp farms, the oil stains, and the plastic waste that drifted in with the waves. The forest that once anchored this coastline had thinned to almost nothing, and with it, the fish.

She looked down at the rows of saplings poking from the tidal muck. “These,” she said, her voice soft but certain, “these are hope.” Last year, her nursery nursed 10,000 mangrove seedlings to life. This year, she’s on pace for triple that. What began as one woman’s stubborn vision has now spread—30 fishers from neighboring villages have joined her, their own hands learning the rituals of restoration. In just six months, they built four community nurseries that now supply reforestation efforts up and down the coast.

There’s pride in her every word, but no boast. “I tell them,” she said, “just sit by the water tomorrow morning. Watch. It’s already changing.” She describes schools of tiny fish flickering through the roots, crabs clicking back into burrows, and the way the mud, once dry and cracked, now rests beneath a canopy of green. “I am part of the change,” she says, almost to herself, like a quiet promise whispered to the sea.

A Regional Movement

Langa’s story is repeated across the NMC. In Comoros and Madagascar, similar efforts are under way. In Tanzania, coastal stewardship committees manage restoration areas. In the Seychelles, nurseries trained in grafting speculative coral strains grow fragile fragments for reef rehabilitation.

This  community‑led network stems from regional cooperation. Over two years, WWF and the Nairobi Convention helped frame a roadmap for the region: marine spatial planning, integrated ocean management, poverty alleviation, and capacity building for community entrepreneurs.

A recent Natural Capital Assessment estimated that the region’s natural assets—goods and services from fisheries, tourism, shoreline protection, and carbon sequestration—are valued at USD 160 billion, generating USD 5.5 billion annually, nearly half of GDP. A staggering figure: the informal sector—unmonitored coastal fisheries, wood collection—contributes around USD 5 billion uncounted in national accounts.

World Restoration Flagship Honour

On the announcement, delegates from five nations gathered online. The NMC’s inclusion as a World Restoration Flagship was proof that community-led initiatives can scale to regional impact. It locks in transparency through monitoring, aligns the region with global standards, and increases its appeal to investors.

Petersen reflected afterwards, “This honor can largely be accredited to the extraordinary collaborative work done… to safeguard marine biodiversity and support coastal communities.”

An Unexpected Return

Standing again among the mangroves, Langa watched the early morning mist lift. Fish darted in the submerged root zone. A small boat, headed out to the reef, cut through calm water. The mangroves absorbed the wake and stirred the sediment but firmed the mud, holding it in place.

A tiny crab, bright blue, scuttled across a root. It stopped. Then, like an outtake from a nature film, a juvenile fish fled into the maze of roots. Life was returning—subtle, tenacious, and profound.

Scaling Green Finance

The NMC roadmap estimates a need for USD 18 million per year to implement restoration and institutional strengthening—USD 5 million for in-country governance and USD 13 million to fund a Blue Economy Technical & Investment Hub for the region. The call goes out for public and private investors.

Already, several domestic banks and philanthropic funds are evaluating climate-smart financing. Impact investors are drawn by the anticipated 30 percent rise in household incomes, 2,000 new jobs, and 12 community-based enterprises forecasted by 2030. Carbon finance is another frontier—Madagascar’s mangroves already sequester more than 300 million tons of CO₂ equivalent, comparable to U.S. household electricity.

Under the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, led by UNEP and FAO, countries worldwide aim to restore over a billion hectares, aligning with the commitments of the Paris Agreement, Bonn Challenge, and Kunming-Montreal framework.

The World Restoration Flagships are a cornerstone: scaled, monitored, integrated efforts that follow ten restoration principles—community inclusion, equity, sustainability, evidence, resilience, biodiversity, and more.

In the villages lining the Channel, the visible signs of this transformation—seedlings sprouting, fisheries rebounding—are met with pride. But as Petersen stresses, “The work in this region is only just beginning.” Over the next five years, the challenge will be to keep the momentum flowing, secure consistent funding, and build regional coordination so the restored mangroves don’t merely survive but thrive.

Why This Matters

The NMC story speaks directly to that mission: vibrant, coastal communities working in tandem with nature to heal the world. It embodies a simple but profound truth: restoration is not only about trees, fish, or reefs—it’s about people, too.

Several days later, Langa joined the community for a morning ritual on the beach: a small blessing ceremony for the restored trees. She stood barefoot, clutching a bundle of saplings. Villagers circled. A fisherman recited a soulful song; others placed handfuls of sand at the roots.

As the sun peeked over the horizon, a breeze carried the scent of salt and new life. Langa looked down at the young mangroves and whispered, “For my daughter—and for this Channel—we’re bringing back what we lost.”

IPS UN Bureau Report