Renowned biologist and agriculturist Dr Ranjith Mahindapala from Sri Lanka conducted a two-day workshop for local coastal communities to help them learn proper management and sustainable growth of mangroves, a source of their livelihood.
The workshop organized by Mangroves for the Future Programme was participated by 32 representatives of different community based organizations (CBOs) that are actively working along the coasts of Sindh and Balochistan.
The event that concluded here on Friday evening was mainly focussed on training of the selected participants in project management and proposal writing.
The purpose of the workshop was to equip the local CBOs so that they can address the needs of the coastal communities in a better manner, said Dr Mahindapala.
On the occasion Shamsul Haq Memon of Coastal Development Authority appreciated the role of the Mangroves for the Future
Programme for sustainable management of coastal resources in Pakistan. He said that the small grants programme of the Mangroves for the Future Programme has opened new opportunities for generating employment and alternative livelihood opportunities for the coastal communities.
Under the Small Grants Facility the grantees receive an amount of up to US$10,000 for a period of one year. The Mangroves for the Future (MFF) programme is a regional initiative operating in eight countries including India, Indonesia, Maldives, Pakistan, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.
MFF aims to strengthen the environmental sustainability of coastal development, and to promote the investment in coastal ecosystem management.
In 2011, under the MFF programme, nine organisations were awarded small grants to work on several unique projects in Sindh and Balochistan.
Mangroves for the Future (MFF) is a unique partner-led initiative to promote investment in coastal ecosystem conservation. In December 2006 President Bill Clinton planted the first mangrove tree to launch the MFF initiative at a fishing village on Phuket Island, Thailand.
At the launch of the Tsunami Legacy Report (2009) in the United Nations in New York In April 2009, Bill Clinton said that MFF has been one of the most positive and forward-looking developments since the tsunami.
MFF provides a collaborative platform among the many different agencies, sectors and countries who are addressing challenges to coastal ecosystem and livelihood issues, to work towards a common goal.
It initially focused on the countries worst-affected by the tsunami; India, Indonesia, Maldives, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. MFF has recently expanded to include Pakistan and Viet Nam.
