Planting mangroves in Madagascar

Project location

Madagascar is an island nation in the Indian Ocean, approximately 400 kilometers off the coast of East Africa. It is the second-largest island country in the world, after Indonesia, and the island of Madagascar itself is the fourth largest in the world. The country is considered a biodiversity hotspot, with more than 90% of its wildlife found nowhere else on Earth.

In recent years, large portions of Madagascar’s original forests have been destroyed, leading to the displacement of entire species and a decrease in the ability of local communities to farm and live off the land. Entire mangrove estuaries have also disappeared, causing bare soil to wash into the sea.

These mangrove forests are not only crucial carbon sinks but also provide habitats for a wide range of marine species that inhabit shallow waters, and they offer vital coastal protection against flooding and storms.

Planting partner

This project is managed by Eden Reforestation Projects, a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide fair wages to impoverished villagers as stewards of global reforestation.

Eden always employs local individuals to grow, plant, and nurture the trees funded by our members until they reach maturity. They do this on a large scale. In addition to restoring forest ecosystems, Eden’s ‘Employ to Plant’ methodology yields multiple positive socio-economic and environmental outcomes.

The Project

Mangroves are small tree species found along coastlines in the tropics and subtropics worldwide. They are particularly adept at absorbing carbon and storing it in their extensive underground root systems. Carbon stored in mangrove forests is considered blue carbon because it is stored along the coast. In addition to their excellent carbon sequestration capabilities, mangroves provide outstanding protection against coastal flooding and storms.

Our efforts to restore mangroves in Madagascar support planting locations along the coastal land in the northwest of the island, near Mahajanga. Although the combined restoration area is larger, to date, we have financed the planting of mangroves covering an area of approximately 600 hectares of this affected coastal region.

The Kuwi.og community has been supporting the planting of mangroves in this part of Madagascar since 2020, and we estimate that our community will fund the planting of 500,000 mangrove trees over the entire project duration.

Update

The planting continues at the Kandrany 2 location of the Eden Reforestation Project! This site covers 2,700 hectares, with 1,900 hectares suitable for mangrove planting. In total, there is space for 38 million trees on this site, and Kuwi.org will also continue to contribute.

We began supporting this project in 2021, and we will continue to finance tree planting here until 2031, or until the site is fully reforested! The trees planted at this location are native mangrove species from Madagascar, including Avicennia marina, Rhizophora mucronata, and Ceriops tagal.

Coastal Wetland Protection

Seagrasses, mangroves, and salt marshes all greatly increase the amount of carbon stored in soil and plant life. Their preservation prevents deterioration and maintains their carbon sinks.

Project SDGs

When allocating our members’ funds, we’re committed to aiding in the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations. Below are the SDGs acknowledged for this project.

💡 Click on the Icon to read follow the progress on each SDG.