Location

The village Japuri is located in a tropical coastal area. Only part of the adjacent coastal area is a nature conservation area.

This coastal area is characterised by the highest biodiversity rates in the world. To the south of the village is a rich seagrass meadow which, firstly, serves as a source of food for the fish population and, secondly, plays a role in their reproduction as young fish find protection in the seagrass meadow. In addition, the seagrass meadows represent essential CO2 sinks.

Off the coast is a coral reef. This is immensely relevant for the biodiversity and protects the beach from erosion and storm damage. There are also mangrove forests, which are among the most productive ecosystems in the world. The magroves similarly protect the surrounding land from storm floods in the context of tropical cyclones. In addition, they are the habitat for a very rare and endemic turtle species, the Japuri turtle.

Inhabitants

An indigenous group lives by the mangrove forest. They have lived in stilt huts on the sea for decades, basing their livelihoods on fishing and gathering shellfish, crabs and prawns in the mangroves. The group also pursues a limited amount of shifting cultivation and trades with the village population. The indigenous group is still largely influenced by tradition but increased tension between young and old can be noted, so the group is no longer homogenous. Several younger members would like to be more involved in touristic activities, in commercial fishing or in shipping.

The villagers of Jaipuri live from fishing and have therefore constructed a small harbour. They hope that the government will finally fulfil its promises to sponsor the economy and develop infrastructure.

Another group of stakeholders in the region are the boatbuilders from the village. The wood from the mangroves and the terrestrial forest are primarily used by them.

Interests

The region with its coral reefs and great biodiversity has attracted various external actors who want to pursue their individual interests in the area. The first of these concerns tourism. The optimal location of the coastal area has encouraged the numbers of tourists to increase steadily in recent years; yacht owners particularly value the region. To further stimulate tourism, large hotels directly on the coast are planned. Also planned is a marina and diving excursions. These projects cause conflicts with the indigenous group and with a number of the inhabitants of Jaipuri. The building of the marina requires the channel to be dredged and endangers the coral reef and the seagrass meadows, but may also improve the economic situation of the villagers.

Thanks to its ideal strategic location close to important trade routes and plans to improve the infrastructure (e.g.  road construction), the area has attracted the attention of a harbour company from a neighbouring town. The Ministry of the Economy would like to support the extension of the harbour and use the area as a secondary location for the larger town. This would lead to better infrastructure and employment opportunities but would involve the navigational channel being dramatically deepened and thus cause further ecological damage.

As the area is being increasingly impacted by tourism, but also by private business and infrastructure projects, the transnational NGO OceanShelter has become involved with the aim of extending the nature conservation area so as to conserve and protect the exceptional biodiversity. The Ministry of the Environment shares this view and would like to designate the region as a nature conservation area to protect the natural environment and enhance the international standing of the country. It is also hoping for international donations.