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Technical Report On Socioeconomic Monitoring In Cades Bay Marine Reserve Antigua And Barbuda

A healthy environment is the primary basis for the economically critical tourism and fishing  
industries in the Caribbean. However, these indust ries, coupled with trad itional settlement and  
development activities, are exerting major influences on the complex mixture of sensitive  
ecosystems that comprise the Caribbean coastal zone. Awareness of the economic and social  
value of the marine environment and the coas tal areas, and acknowledgment of the need to  
protect and preserve sensitive ecosystems, part icularly coral reefs, has led each Caribbean  
country to establish marine protected areas or re serves. These areas are useful tools, not only for  
protecting and conserving threat ened coastal and marine areas, but also for the direct  
involvement of local communities in the management and by channelling some of the economic  
benefits from the tourism industry to the local communities, thereby allowing them to directly  
benefit from it and creating incentives to preserve the environment.  
Poor fishing and land use prac tices, coastal development, an d numerous other threats are  
increasing the pressures on coral reef health. These threats can be mitigated with appropriate  
management practices that benefit conservation and management of coral reefs. However,  
altering practices that are harmful to coral reefs is often difficult because the various ways in  
which people utilize their natural resources are invariably related to a multitude of social,  
cultural, and economic factors. Coastal resource managers cannot limit themselves to managing  
reefs from only a biophysical standpoint, but must include socioeconomic factors. It is essential  
to understand how stakeholders use and perceive coastal resources prior to attempts to involve  
local people in community-based or co-management efforts. Gaining an understanding of the  
socioeconomic factors driving resource use can allow resource managers to identify root causes  
of resource degradation and adap t management strategies to refl ect the needs and desires of the  
stakeholders.  
The findings from socioeconomic monitoring can be used to improve future reef management  
strategies. Understanding how socioeconomic factors influence resource us e can assist resource  
managers in identifying root causes of envir onmental problems and help efficaciously apply  
limited funds by adapting project activities to local conditions. Managers can use the  
information to demonstrate to the public and policy makers the importance of protecting the  
natural environment including co ral reefs, and to support th eir actions in planning new  
management policies.

 

Area of Interest: Antigua

Year: 2017

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Caribbean Protected Areas Gateway

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