Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) – Mangrove Protection
Mangroves are among the most critical natural defences in the Gulf of Guinea, offering protection from storm surges, supporting fisheries, and sequestering significant amounts of carbon. Yet, they are under severe threat from deforestation and unsustainable practices. Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) provides a pathway to reverse this trend. Through PES schemes, communities and landowners would be compensated for conserving and restoring mangroves, with finance mobilized through blue-carbon credits, donor support, or private-sector commitments. GoG-RRI will champion the development of a Gulf of Guinea Mangrove Carbon Program, which would standardize monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) systems while embedding equitable benefit-sharing mechanisms. This ensures that conservation generates tangible income streams for local communities, aligning ecological integrity with socio-economic development.
- What it is: Monetize carbon sequestration and coastal protection benefits of mangroves; channel payments to communities for conservation/restoration.
- Why it fits: The region hosts extensive mangroves with high carbon stocks; restoration also buffers storm surge/erosion and supports fisheries.
- Evidence & momentum: West Africa holds ~1.97M ha of mangroves with significant carbon storage potential; recent Ghana mangrove projects are generating credits. DNB PortalResearchGateblueeconomynews.earth
- GoG-RRI angle: Develop a Gulf of Guinea Mangrove Carbon Program: standardized MRV, community benefit-sharing, and aggregation to reach scale for premium credit issuance.
