Nguna-Pele Marine Protected Area joins LMMA Network

Nguna-Pele Marine Protected Area, Efate, Vanuatu.

Photo by Christopher Bartlett

The Locally Managed Marine Area Network is happy to welcome the Nguna-Pele Marine Protected Area in Efate, Vanuatu, as a member of the LMMA Network!   While community-based marine conservation work has been ongoing in Vanuatu for many years, this is our first formal LMMA Network member from Vanuatu.

The team at the Nguna-Pele MPA is currently involved in and dedicated to a long-term adaptive management program, designed to most appropriately utilize the area's valuable marine and reef resources.  Well-known and supported throughout the region, the Nguna-Pele MPA has strong links to national government and local NGOs. 

The Nguna-Pele MPA consists of 16 member villages, and has an Area Management Plan and unique village management action plans and site descriptions.  They have collected baseline monitoring data and their resident marine biologist will be compiling and transforming the data from their long-term MPA study to fit the LMMA Network's Learning Framework Database for Network-wide analysis. 

Charley Manua laying down line for monitoring in the Nguna-Pele MPA. 

Photo by Christopher Bartlett

Nguna-Pele MPA's application for membership has been a long time coming.  We congratulate their hard work and look forward to sharing experiences and together improving the practice of marine conservation over the coming years.  A big welcome to Nguna-Pele MPA to our global Network!

Members of the Nguna-Pele MPA management team displaying a draft sea turtle regulation. 
Photo by Christopher Bartlett