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The Ecosystem Approach implemented by local fishermen in Bocas del Toro (Panama)

In an attempt to counter growing environmental pressures, local communities have developped and are implementing a sustainable community management plan, based on IUCN's Ecosysem Approach.

Document created 05 March 2004, last updated 24 November 2017

Village in Bocas del Toro  
Bocas del Toro is a paradise on Earth. The colourful coral reefs, the diverse mangrove forests, the exotic islands with white sandy beaches, the coastal forests, the variety of species and the friendly population make you never want to leave again. Only recently have tourists discovered the beauty of Bocas del Toro in Panama.

Unfortunately the rise of tourism has resulted in the unplanned development of the area, creating pressures on the ecosystems and causing environmental problems such as over-fishing of the lagoon and coral reef destruction. Local communities have lived here for many years and realise that their heritage is threatened by unregulated practices. That's why indigenous fishermen have put forward suggestions to the government to regulate the access to fishing grounds and to set certain areas aside for conservation. IUCN's Commission on Ecosystem Management (website link provided below) in partnership with PROARCA (project operating in Meso America funded by a/o USAID and The Nature Conservancy, website link provided below) support this with the implementation of sustainable community management plans, based on the Ecosystem Approach.
Tourism in Bocas del Toro  
The Ecosystem Approach
The Ecosystem Approach, consisting of 12 Principles and 5 points of Operational Guidance is a strategy for the integrated management of land, water and living resources that promotes conservation and sustainable use in an equitable way. It looks beyond the boundaries of Protected Areas and promotes inter-sectoral cooperation, placing humans at the centre of conservation efforts. The Netherlands have long recognised the importance of an integrated approach to nature conservation and are financing the IUCN project "Promoting application of the Ecosystem Approach through IUCN's Commission on Ecosystem Management". Bocas del Toro will be the first case study analysis in which the principles are applied and tested. CEM's regional vice chair for meso-America, Nestor Windevoxhel, will be coordinating this project.
Mangrove environment in Bocas del Toro  
Bastimentos Island National Marine Park
Located in the north-western corner of Panama, the marine archipelago of Bocas del Toro includes numerous remote islands with their unique flora and fauna, coral reefs and mangrove keys. Local communities have always lived from the goods and services that the variety of ecosystems delivered without degrading the system. In 1988 the government established the 'Bastimentos Island National Marine Park' in the archipelago based on recommendations from a scientific study. The park covers 32,700 acres of which 28,600 are marine. The establishment of the park was done without consulting the local communities and as a consequence they were not very supportive of it.

A community management plan for the park
Three years ago PROARCA started a participatory process to develop an integrated management plan for the National Park involving all the stakeholders. The plan was submitted to the government, but until today no follow-up has been made. As a result of this process the local fishermen realised that they needed to organise themselves to counterbalance the unsustainable developments in the region. ADEPESCO, a 'coalition for conservation' was formed, organising 12 communities of Bocas del Toro.
Community consultation  
One year ago, ADEPESCO developed, together with the local authorities and NGOs a management plan for the whole archipelago that takes up the National Park, seven community areas with areas for conservation and for sustainable use, and a bufferzone with regulated access and use, controlled by the authorities. The communities have not received a response from the authorities. Without legal confirmation of their plans, they are not sure how to proceed. They have the competence required to implement the Ecosystem Approach on their own, but welcome the support and guidance of international organisations such as PROARCA and IUCN.

Involvement and support from the local community
In a workshop in Bocas del Toro on July 8, 2003, all stakeholders of the archipelago discussed the proposal to start a project that would test if community based management following the Ecosystem Approach is feasible and sustainable. "We are tired of always talking about how we should conserve and sustainably use our resources. We are very capable of managing our environment according to the Ecosystem Approach, but we are waiting for follow-up from the authorities for implementation. We welcome this project of IUCN/CEM and PROARCA in supporting us preserving our heritage." This is how ADEPESCO's president, Humberto Duguel put into words the commitment of the local population for managing their resources in a sustainable way.
ADEPESCO's president, Humberto Duguel  
All stakeholders supported this initiative and a plan was developed to start the project. A test site in the archipelago will be selected by the communities according to certain criteria determined during the workshop, a community management plan based on the Ecosystem Approach will be implemented and a monitoring system will be set in place to check the sustainability. To disseminate the results to the stakeholders, and at different levels of the government a communication strategy will be designed with the help of IUCN's Commission on Education and Communication.

The successful implementation of this project may well convince authorities and other stakeholders in the region that the application of a community based management system following the Ecosystem Approach is the way to guarantee the sustainable management of natural resources and sustainable development.

This document was reproduced with due authorisation from IUCN's Ecosystem Management website. Please refer to link below.

Links to external websites:

[wb1]  IUCN's Ecosystem Management website - Read more reports on IUCN's Ecosystem Management work, as well as a presentation of the Ecosystem Approach

[wb2]  PROARCA's website - To read more about this programme and its working sites.

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Village in Bocas del Toro

Tourism in Bocas del Toro

Mangrove environment in Bocas del Toro

Community consultation

ADEPESCO's president, Humberto Duguel

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