Aug 17, 2026 |
Three community monitors from the Piti, Munde and Xinguti lagoons, located in Maputo National Park, attended a refresher session at Futi on the collection of artisanal fishing data.
The training was intended to review the data collection forms, identify gaps in the system and provide practice in species identification, ending with hands-on supervision in the field, at Piti lagoon, according to Fundação Likhulu.
The monitors are residents of the communities of Maputo National Park and it is on them that the daily record of what comes out of the three lagoons depends. According to the same foundation, two rangers and two managers of the artisanal fisheries monitoring programme also took part, and the action forms part of putting into effect the memorandum of understanding between the organisation and the park.
The programme these monitors run began in 2018 and operates for six months, from April to September, with a closed season observed in the remaining six months to allow the resource to recover. The indicator species followed are the African sharptooth catfish, Clarias gariepinus, and the Mozambique tilapia, Oreochromis mossambicus.
The data they collect underpin the management of an activity with local economic weight. Artisanal fishing in these lagoons provides employment for the monitors themselves and is a source of income for neighbouring communities, through sales in informal markets, and for markets and restaurants in Matutuíne district and in the city of Maputo.
The Piti, Munde and Xinguti lagoons are the largest in Maputo National Park, created in 2021 through the merger of the former Maputo Special Reserve with the Ponta do Ouro Partial Marine Reserve. The protected area covers 1040 square kilometres in Matutuíne district, forms part of the Lubombo Transfrontier Conservation Area and its lagoons are home to hippos, Nile crocodiles and great bird diversity.
Photos: Fundação Likhulu
