Lessons learned from Eastern Africa: the development of policy on ICZM at national and regional levels

Coastal zones of Eastern Africa are endowed with a diversity of life forms and resources which support large populations of coastal communities. The economies of the countries in the region are dependent on these resources in the form of fisheries and coastal forest products, tourism, shipways and coastal facilities such as ports, industries and urban centers. Population growth, especially in coastal urban centers is increasing the demand for coastal and marine resources. In addition, poverty, lack of awareness and inadequate management have resulted in over exploitation of coastal and marine resources, habitat destruction including shoreline erosion as well as marine pollution. The rate of resource depletion and environmental degradation is on the increase. There is an urgent need for instituting management measure that will reverse the current trend. The governments in the region have accepted and are committed to the implementation of Integrated coastal management (ICZM) as an effective mechanism for addressing and resolving the multiplicity of issues experienced in coastal areas through sectoral coordination and collaborative approaches. However, the process has just begun and there are a number of ICZM initiatives in progress at local, national and regional levels. This paper presents the issues of the coastal zone and reviews some of the progress made to date in the implementation of ICZM.