With over 45% of Mozambique's population living beneath the poverty line, communities rely heavily on natural resources and forests
Mozambique is home to extensive biodiversity and varying landscapes with forests at the core of its social, environmental, and economic well-being. However, more than 8 million hectares of forest (over 30,000 square miles) have been destroyed. Cyclones, floods, cutting down trees for firewood and charcoal, clearing large areas for farmland, and commercial logging are the leading causes of deforestation in Mozambique.
In 2018, we began exploring potential reforestation project sites near Mozambique’s capital in Maputo with a vision to bring back the vitality of the forests that fringe the rivers and coastline in Southern Mozambique. A large area along the coast that had been stripped of its mangrove ecosystem was identified as our starting point. With a seed source and a local workforce in place, the reforestation program launched. In the first three months of planting, over 280,000 mangrove trees were produced, planted, and protected by the local workforce.