Sea Turtle Day 2022 in Itsamia Mohéli (Comoros)

By Anfani Msoili, ADSEI Advisory Board Member, National Focal Point IOSEA Marine Turtle MOU, WIO-MTTF Member

On Saturday, 11 June 2022, the Itsamia village on the island of Mohéli held an extraordinary ceremony to launch the celebration of its annual “Marine Turtle Day”, which normally takes place on 28 May. This year, organized by the National Park of Mohéli, the Governorate of Mohéli and the Association for the Socio-economic Development of Itsamia (ADSEI), under the sponsorship of the Government of the Union of the Comoros through the Ministry of Environment, a special event took place in the presence of the President of the Union of Comoros, HEM Azali Assoumani, his government headed by the Minister of Environment HEM Houmeid Msaidie, and the Governor of Mohéli HEM Mohamed Said Fazul.

The National Park on the southern coast of the island of Mohéli shelters significant biodiversity, including marine turtles, humpback whales and dugong. Several thousand green turtles are estimated to nest each year on the five beaches that constitute the shoreline of Itsamia. The nearby village has benefitted from eco-tourism and alternative livelihood opportunities centred on marine turtles. The area is recognized as a site in the Network of Sites of Importance for Marine Turtles in the Indian Ocean - South-East Asia Region.

The National Focal Point of the IOSEA Marine Turtle MOU, Anfani Msoili, who also serves as Member of the Western Indian Ocean Marine Turtle Task Force and is a resource person of ADSEI, led through the ceremony.

It is important to note the presence of the wives of the Governor of Mohéli and the President of the Union of the Comoros at this ceremony. Their engagement illustrates the importance of the involvement of women in the Comoros in the cause of environmental protection, and shows the national significance of the actions undertaken for more than thirty years by ADSEI.

Following speeches by the many distinguished guests present, the Young Ambassadors of ADSEI presented a sketch about different themes relating to marine turtles, ranging from ecotourism to egg-laying, and highlighting both natural and anthropogenic threats to marine turtles. This illustrated how ADSEI prepares the future generation to take over conservation of our marine species.

ADSEI then presented the President with the IOSEA Site Network Certificate, which officially recognizes Itsamia as one of the 11 sites in the IOSEA Site Network.

The ceremony ended with a visit to Itsamia beach, where turtles were released and photos taken. Like all annual “Marine Turtle Day” celebrations in Itsamia, this one too was highly effective in raising awareness for the cause of protecting marine turtles and their coastal habitat.

For the entire week after this launching event, ADSEI organized related awareness-raising activities in the village of Itsamia, including debates, drawing competitions, general culture competitions, dictation competitions, marathon for men, women, young girls and young boys, and folklore dances. At the end of the week, the winners of the various competitions were announced and given their awards.

Last updated on 22 June 2022

Type: 
News
Country: 
Comoros
Species: 
Chelonia mydas
Species group: 
Reptiles