The Environmental Protection Area of the First and Second Islands (APAIPS) is the first conservation area with the Environmental Protection Area (EPA/APA) category in Mozambique. It was established in 2012 by Ministerial Decree 42/2012 of December 12, 2012, and is a part of the national system of conservation areas. APAIPS is the second largest marine conservation area in Africa, with a surface area of approximately 1,040,926 ha (hectares).
The Archipelago of the Primeiras/First and Segundas/Ssecond Islands comprises two groups of islands, with five islands each, located parallel to the coast of Mozambique. The southern group of islands is in Zambézia province, and the northern group of islands is in Nampula. The islands form a nearly continuous archipelago between Pebane and Angoche, passing along the coastline of the Moma and Larde districts.
This Environmental Protection Area is connected to the Indian Ocean to the East. The western boundary of the Environmental Protection Area follows a 10 km line inland from the high-tide line, resulting in a land area of approximately 205,000 ha. The APAIPS includes estuarine areas, mangroves, intertidal areas, and tidal rivers from the Sangage to the Moniga River. Furthermore, it has been categorized as a Key Biodiversity Area (KBA). It boasts significant biodiversity, including a significant population of Icuria dunensis, a tree species endemic to Mozambique, listed as Endangered (EN) according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The area also has two coral reef complexes, seagrass beds, and green turtles.
BIOFUND has been providing ongoing, long-term support for the basic and minimum operational costs of this environmental protection area since 2019, using its own funds, from Conservation International/Global Conservation Fund (GCF) donation to the BIOFUND endowment. With support from the PROMOVE Biodiversidade program, the aim is to create the necessary management and administration conditions for the area while simultaneously encouraging the implementation of sustainable community economic activities.
As part of the program, a grant agreement was signed in the first semester of 2023 between ANAC, BIOFUND, and WWF (leader of the WWF-AENA-Kulima consortium) for the implementation of the Promoting Biodiversity in APAIPS project. Broadly, the project aims to protect biodiversity and contribute to improving the living conditions of rural communities in APAIPS through the sustainable management of natural resources in the provinces of Nampula and Zambézia./p>
This park covers an area of 453,200 ha, of which 286,100 ha are the core protection area and there is a Buffer Zone (ZT) of 167,100 ha. It covers the districts of Gilé and Pebane. Initially established as a National Reserve on April 23, 1932, it was elevated to the category of National Park in 2020. The area is managed by ANAC through an Administration structure established in the Park in partnership with the International Foundation for Wildlife Management (FFS-IGF), which has invested in and provided technical-financial support through an agreement signed in September 2018 with ANAC. The FFS-IGF signed the implementation of PROMOVE Biodiversidade agreement with BIOFUND in October 2020. This Park also benefited from BIOFUND’s support from 2017 to 2021 through the APEM/Abelha project co-financed by the French Development Agency (AFD) and the BIOFUND endowment, and since 2022 BIOFUND continues funding in perpetuity through the PostAbelha project.
PNAG is particularly important for the conservation of Miombo woodland, alternating with the vast savanna areas. Intact riparian vegetation occurs along the riverbanks. This area serves as a green lung of Zambézia province.
PROMOVE Biodiversidade program aims to support and complement the management and administration efforts of this biodiversity conservation area, as well as strengthen the capacity of local communities. To this end, two agreements were signed: the first with the International Wildlife Management Foundation (FFS-IGF) in October 2020, extende until October 2026, to support the management and implement the conservation component. The other agreement was signed with the Zambézia Province Development Network (RADEZA) from March 2021 to July 2025, focusing on implementing the community development component in the PNAG buffer zone.
Mabu Mount is a 1,700 m high granite massif located in Lugela district, north of the Lugela River, in Zambézia province. It is an area rich in biodiversity but without a legal conservation status as yet. Its richness became known through research and dissemination by Julian Bayliss using Google Earth, which is why it is sometimes called the Google Forest. The first visit to Mabu Mount was in December 2005 by Julian Bayliss, Camila De Sousa, Eric Hermann, and Hassam Patel, and since then it has been the site of a series of international and national scientific expeditions that have recorded and published information on several endemic species (some new to science). Regarding vegetation, all studies on Mount Mabu have shown that the humid forest area is very extensive for the region (between 5,500 and 7,900 ha), with the vast majority found between 1,000 and 1,400 m above the sea level. This type of mid-altitude forest is increasingly rare in the southern African region, as many of these areas have been deforested in the last 100 years for wood extraction and shifting cultivation. It is one of the Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs), activated by the presence of 17 species across the taxonomic groups of plants, butterflies, amphibians, reptiles, and birds. Of these, nine (9) species Atheris mabuensis, Dipsadoboa montisilva, Lygodactylus mabu, Nadzikambia baylissi, Rhampholeon maspictus, Iolaus (Epamera) malaikae, Helixanthera schizocalyx, Pavetta gurueensis, and Sclerochiton hirsutus are endemic to Mabu. The PROMOVE Biodiversity program aims to contribute to Mabu's becoming a formal conservation area, with the participation of local communities in its sustainable management and livelihood improvement. To achieve this goal, an agreement was signed in March 2021 between BIOFUND ANAC and WWF (leader of the WWF-ReGeCom-RADEZA consortium), establishing the basis for the proposed initiatives.
