BLUE ECONOMY
The "Fondation Resources et Nature" (FORENA) is one of the 26 NGOs and associations supported by the Mitsui OSK Lines Charitable Trust (MOL).
The MOL Charitable Trust is an initiative of Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd (MOL) in the margins of the ecological disaster caused by the Wakashio shipwreck.
FORENA’s project will involve training women from the south-east of Mauritius in the cultivation and implementation of mangroves and other useful and/or threatened plant species.
Goro Yamashita, Chairman of the MOL Charitable Trust commented: "We have based ourselves on the ten objectives designated by MOL, which are in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for the planet. The projects presenting the closest and relevant objectives in relation to these objectives and our selection criteria have been chosen ”.
©FORENA
©WIKIPEDIA
What is the Blue Economy?
The blue economy covers a wide range of uses in maritime and coastal areas. Mauritius governs a vast sea expanse in the Indian Ocean. Several islands are inhabited, such as Rodrigues and Agalega.
The Mauritian maritime area is located on a strategic commercial axis between Asia and Africa and the Pacific Ocean. It is home to a maritime traffic that is close to the passage of about 35,000 ships of all types annually, including cruise ships, tankers and container ships. The Wakashio shipwreck in 2020 caused an unprecedented ecological disaster on the east coast of Mauritius. This demonstrated the great need to plan how to protect maritime wealth and the fragile coastal ecosystems while exploiting maritime space for economic reasons.
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The role of FORENA?
FORENA is part of 26 NGOs whose actions on the east coast of Mauritius will be financed for one year by the MOL Charitable Trust. The MOL Charitable Trust was set up by Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd, owner of the Wakashio, to support coastal communities that were impacted by the sinking of the container ship, paying special attention to the families of fishermen.
The FORENA project consists of the creation of a nursery and the training of 25 women from the East Coast about the actions that need to be taken for the propagation of plants. In addition to useful plants, this nursery will have the particularity of hosting mangrove shoots.
It should be noted that mangroves have a carbon capture role 3 to 5 times that of forests. The nursery will become a training centre for women in vulnerable situations, teaching them new skills to make them more autonomous and employable.
©FORENA
©nationsonline
The impact ?
At the end of the training, these women living on the East Coast will be able to start their own business or apply for agricultural jobs. FORENA is committed to buying back the young plants and shoots they grow, and use them in its agroforestry projects around the Island.
Thus, from the training project to the establishment and management of a nursery, 25 households will be able to foresee a better tomorrow while contributing to the protection of nature and biodiversity.