The coastal and marine environment of Western and Eastern Africa: Challenges to sustainable management and socioeconomic development

Abstract

This chapter sets out the challenges facing coastal countries in Western and Eastern Africa in managing their coastal and marine resources for the sustainable benefit of their populations, in the context of the increasing local to global demands on those resources and the pressures of pollution, habitat destruction, and climate change. Current mechanisms for the governance and management of the coastal and marine environment at national to regional scales are reviewed and their effectiveness appraised.