The short story

In collaboration with local marine recreation providers and the Locally Managed Marine Area Network, CORAL is establishing the Madang Conservation Corridor on the north coast of Madang Province in Papua New Guinea. Partnering with CELCOR, a non-governmental organization supported by PNG’s government, CORAL delivered a series of capacity-building and organizational trainings for the Madang Lagoon Association, the local organization representing traditional resource owners. In the future, CORAL will continue its work developing a management plan for the Madang Lagoon, training marine recreation providers in environmental best practices, and eventually extending its conservation programs to the nearby island of Manus.

More Progress in Papua New Guinea

Setting Up the Fundamentals for Lasting Conservation

The Madang Conservation Corridor (MCC), comprising the principal focus area of the Madang Lagoon in addition to the nearby islands of Manus, Bagabag, and Karkar, is a hotbed of biodiversity within the Indo-Pacific's Coral Triangle (an area encompassed geographically by East Timor, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines and Solomon Islands).

Because Madang Province possesses many unique ecological and cultural attributes, the PNG federal government has chosen this area as one of five focus sites within the country for tourism development as part of a Model Province Five-Year Tourism Plan. The plan earmarks specific tourism activities for development in the province, including diving, cultural and nature-based tourism, cruising, and sportfishing. To make the most of this opportunity, CORAL will be using its well-documented experience promoting sustainable business practices and leveraging the marine recreation sector for conservation. We have mobilized local partners to support the MCC, including marine recreation providers, World Wildlife Fund, and the Locally Managed Marine Area Network, and we will continue to build on this trust and cooperation as the effort moves forward.

By the end of our work in 2008, marine recreation providers will have implemented sustainable business practices, we will have identified the most serious threats to local reefs, and local communities will have strategized initiatives and applied for funding to address said threats. In addition, the Madang Lagoon Association will be a fully-functional organization capable of supporting marine conservation programs in the area.

With the Madang Lagoon under local management and village stakeholders trained and socialized on effective managed marine area (MMA) structure, we plan to expand our efforts beyond Madang to nearby islands and communities that can participate in the growth of the conservation corridor.

Signs of Progress

  • 100 percent of dive operators trained in Sustainable Marine Recreation (SMR).
  • Local threats identified and remediation plans being developed through SMR and Conservation in Action (CIA) workshops.
  • Dialogue facilitated between community, business, and government leaders regarding the need for and design of a user fee system.
  • Madang Lagoon Association functioning as a transparent and representative local body.