WIO LMMA Alliance
Building on Madagascar’s MIHARI Network, momentum has grown across the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) to strengthen and connect Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMA) networks. In 2024, IUCN-led national consultations were conducted in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Comoros which assessed LMMA progress and needs, laying the foundation for regional collaboration. This culminated in the first Western Indian Ocean (WIO) Locally Managed Marine Area (LMMA) Forum was held in Mahajanga, Madagascar, in September 2024 and that brought together over 300 participants from nine countries. This regional forum marked a significant milestone in the development of a regional alliance. Throughout 2025, a series of regional and international exchanges and consultations further informed the structure, governance, and priorities of the emerging WIO LMMA Alliance.
What is the WIO LMMA Alliance?
The WIO LMMA Alliance is a community-based regional platform dedicated to strengthening and expanding LMMAs and other effective community-based marine resource management approaches across the WIO region. It connects local community groups and networks across the region to amplify their voices, leadership, knowledge, and priorities. In doing so, it builds a stronger, more coordinated, and more influential community presence in regional dialogue, decision-making, and action.
It is not just a network serving communities. It is a regional platform that coastal communities and community-based organizations get to shape and lead.
“The WIO LMMA Alliance provides a platform for learning, collaboration, and collective action. It strengthens our ability to share experiences, amplify community voices, and supports effective stewardship of our marine and coastal resources. At a time when our oceans face growing pressures, the need for strong local leadership and regional solidarity has never been greater.”
~Charles Janji Nyale | Chair, WIO LMMA Alliance
The Vision
A thriving Western Indian Ocean where coastal communities lead the sustainable management of marine resources, ensuring healthy ecosystems and equitable livelihoods for all.
The Mission
To strengthen a regional alliance that unites Western Indian Ocean coastal communities into a collective voice, amplifying their capacity to lead ocean governance, safeguards their rights, securing both ecological health and community resilience.
The added value of the WIO LMMA Alliance
The WIO region benefits from a range of conservation, research, and NGO networks. They bring technical expertise, policy engagement, and regional coordination. But the WIO LMMA Alliance fills a distinct and complementary role. Rooted in community leadership and locally led marine resource management, it is designed to place coastal communities at the heart of regional exchange, collaboration, and collective action.
Its added value lies in strengthening connections among communities across countries and raising their collective voice at the regional level. It gives a direct channel through which local needs, concerns, experiences, knowledge, and priorities can shape regional dialogue and decision-making without intermediaries. By bridging the gap between local action and regional processes, it can help ensure that policies, investments, partnerships, and conservation initiatives reflect the realities and aspirations of those who depend on and care for marine resources.
“For the MIHARI Network, the WIO LMMA Alliance represents a strategic opportunity to elevate the visibility of Madagascar’s LMMAs, foster peer-to-peer learning, and unlock new avenues for partnerships, financing, and advocacy at both regional and global levels."
Be Part of the Movement
You can join the Alliance as community groups and networks committed to advancing locally led marine resource management across the WIO region
You can support the Alliance by investing in its priority actions and proposed Conservation Trust or you can become partners to support the implementation of one or more of its strategic pillars
In support of this vision, Mission Inclusion (Mi) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) are implementing the Regenerative Seascapes for People, Climate and Nature (ReSea) project, in partnership with local feminist organizations across Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar, and Comoros. Funded by Global Affairs Canada under the Partnering for Climate initiative, ReSea aims to strengthen the physical and socioeconomic resilience of coastal communities by accelerating the adoption of gender-responsive Nature-based Solutions (NbS), promoting sustainable marine and coastal management, and supporting regenerative blue economy practices. These efforts are aligned with the broader Great Blue Wall (GBW) initiative, which seeks to establish a network of sustainable, resilient, and inclusive seascapes through a people-centric approach.
The GBW initiative is structured around four key pillars i.e. Blue People, Blue Planet, Blue Prosperity, and Blue Partnerships which collectively advance equity, conservation, and local empowerment. Through these pillars, the WIO LMMA Alliance aims to increase the number of effectively managed LMMAs, secure legal recognition and integration into national frameworks, strengthen financial and technical self-sufficiency, and elevate the voices of women, youth, and local communities. The Alliance also prioritizes research, data collection, traditional knowledge integration, and targeted advocacy through storytelling and communications. Together, these efforts are driving transformative and inclusive ocean governance in the WIO, contributing to measurable ecological outcomes and supporting the achievement of global 30×30 conservation targets.
In support of this vision, Mission Inclusion (Mi) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) are implementing the Regenerative Seascapes for People, Climate and Nature (ReSea) project, in partnership with local feminist organizations across Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar, and Comoros. Funded by Global Affairs Canada under the Partnering for Climate initiative, ReSea aims to strengthen the physical and socioeconomic resilience of coastal communities by accelerating the adoption of gender-responsive Nature-based Solutions (NbS), promoting sustainable marine and coastal management, and supporting regenerative blue economy practices. These efforts are aligned with the broader Great Blue Wall (GBW) initiative, which seeks to establish a network of sustainable, resilient, and inclusive seascapes through a people-centric approach.
The GBW initiative is structured around four key pillars i.e. Blue People, Blue Planet, Blue Prosperity, and Blue Partnerships which collectively advance equity, conservation, and local empowerment. Through these pillars, the WIO LMMA Alliance aims to increase the number of effectively managed LMMAs, secure legal recognition and integration into national frameworks, strengthen financial and technical self-sufficiency, and elevate the voices of women, youth, and local communities. The Alliance also prioritizes research, data collection, traditional knowledge integration, and targeted advocacy through storytelling and communications. Together, these efforts are driving transformative and inclusive ocean governance in the WIO, contributing to measurable ecological outcomes and supporting the achievement of global 30×30 conservation targets.