STATE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREA MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVENESS IN SOUTH AFRICA

This 2021 report by WWF South Africa evaluates the management effectiveness of the South African marine protected area (MPA) network using the Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (METT-SA 3). Based on a 2018 assessment of 27 sites, the report identifies systemic deficiencies in funding, staffing, and law enforcement, while proposing a phased approach to move MPAs from priority or basic management levels to optimal effectiveness.

• South Africa significantly expanded its MPA network in 2019, increasing the coverage of its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) from 0.5% to 5.4% by declaring 20 additional MPAs, bringing the total to 42.
• A majority of South African MPAs suffer from critical resource shortages: 73% lack an adequate capital budget, 45% have inadequate or non-existent operational budgets, and 64% have insufficient human resource capacity or vacant positions.
• Law enforcement is severely constrained across the network, with 73% of MPAs showing some deficiencies in their capacity to enforce rules and 23% facing major deficiencies. A specific barrier noted is the difficulty staff face in obtaining Fishery Control Officer (FCO) cards.
• Biodiversity monitoring and planning are inadequate, with 50% of MPAs failing to meet all biodiversity targets. This is linked to 27% of MPAs lacking sufficient information on key species and habitats and 32% not performing research relevant to management objectives.
• Public awareness and boundary demarcation are significant weaknesses; 56% of MPAs lack a fully integrated education, awareness, and interpretation programme, and 64% do not have fully demarcated boundaries.
• Cultural heritage management is largely neglected, with 90% of studied sites failing to formally identify cultural heritage assets and 86% of those with informal identifications lacking formal site management plans from accredited practitioners.
• The report introduces a three-phase approach to improve management: Phase 1 focuses on raising priority (red) indicators to a basic (orange) level; Phase 2 upgrades basic indicators to optimal (green); and Phase 3 focuses on maintenance through assessments every 5 years.
• The South African MPA network currently lacks a climate change mitigation plan, which the report identifies as a critical need for identifying and addressing environmental threats.

APA

Adams, R. J., & Kowalski, P. (2021). STATE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREA MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVENESS IN SOUTH AFRICA. WWF South Africa. https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/state_of_marine_protected_area_management_effectiveness_in_south_africa.pdf

Chicago

Adams, Robin Jon, and Peter Kowalski. STATE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREA MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVENESS IN SOUTH AFRICA. WWF South Africa, 2021. https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/state_of_marine_protected_area_management_effectiveness_in_south_africa.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Adams |first1=Robin Jon |last2=Kowalski |first2=Peter |title=STATE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREA MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVENESS IN SOUTH AFRICA |publisher=WWF South Africa |date=2021 |url=https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/state_of_marine_protected_area_management_effectiveness_in_south_africa.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{adams2021state, author = {Adams, Robin Jon and Kowalski, Peter}, title = {{STATE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREA MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVENESS IN SOUTH AFRICA}}, institution = {WWF South Africa}, year = {2021}, url = {https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/state_of_marine_protected_area_management_effectiveness_in_south_africa.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }