By Anselmo Gaspar, Mozambique
In the summer of 1996, in the Quirimbas Archipelago, Cabo Delgado Province, me from the Ministry for the Coordination of Environmental Affairs (MICOA), was selected with other technicians from the Institute of Fisheries Research (IIP) and the Provincial Directorate for the Coordination of Environmental Action (DPCA) of Cabo Delgado, together with British technicians, to participate in a course on Diving, Mangrove, Inter-Tidal Zones and Coral Reefs Research Techniques. The activity, which lasted 60 days, was facilitated by a British Organization called the British Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC).
We lived in tents and makeshift huts. Every day we organized ourselves into groups for (1) cooking and cleaning; (2) mangrove, seagrass; (3) diving and (4) monitoring of fish.
For diving, we first had training on swimming, theoretical and practical classes for 2 or 3 weeks. Diving has a mix of conflicting feelings for me, between fear of the depths and ferocious animals, curiosity and anxiety to see in real life the beauty and biodiversity that you hear about in theory, read about and see in magazines and movies. In the end, the desire to see the ocean beneath the surface won over the fear!
During the whole period we had to bathe with sea water, as it was necessary to save drinking water for cooking and washing clothes. We learned a lot in the area of diving, and I had an international contact with coastal and marine biodiversity.
A remarkable episode was one day when I carelessly dropped a boot into the water and fearfully jumped into the water and recovered. Also, the other day while we were snorkeling, we were prowled by sharks and colleagues didn’t tell us until many days later.
In the end, we managed to travel through the 7 islands that make up the Archipelago to make an inventory of coastal and marine resources.
I am proud to have participated in the collection of data that served for the proposal of the Quirimbas Archipelago National Reserve.
“Journeys to the Sea” is a new series of inspiring stories that highlight the personal connections of marine professionals with the ocean. As a follow up to World Oceans Day on June 8th, WIOMSA is excited to launch a three-month-long celebration dedicated to the ocean. The series will feature 34 unique stories from across the Western Indian Ocean region. These stories will share firsthand accounts of ocean-related experiences, reflections, and narratives from participants who have been part of the Sida-funded International Training Programme on marine spatial planning, “Planning for a Sustainable Blue Future in the Western Indian Ocean”. The stories have been part of the Ocean Storytelling component of the workshop, led by Dr Mia Strand, Nelson Mandela University. Read the collection of stories here.
Feature photo: Marine biologist, Dr Tessa Hempson, in Metundo Island in the northern Quirimbas Archipelago. © Mark Ziembicki
