Blue Forest, a UAE-based mangrove restoration project developer, has broken ground on the first phase of Africa’s largest mangrove reforestation project in Mozambique. Phase one of the MozBlue project will see the restoration of 5,000 hectares of degraded coastline in Mozambique’s Zambezia region.
MozBlue is the first carbon removal project to grant formal land tenure to local communities over the restoration project areas, empowering communities with ownership and ensuring the project’s long-term success and permanence.
The first phase, which is being financed by Removall, a French carbon project developer and investor, will create approximately 1,250 forestry jobs across 52 local communities, fostering economic growth and improved livelihoods. The project will also address the drivers of deforestation through social programs such as providing alternatives for building materials, improved cookstoves to reduce wood consumption, and sustainable livelihood initiatives to diversify beyond dependence on selling mangrove charcoal.
“We are proud to be partnering with Blue Forest in launching Africa’s largest mangrove restoration project,” said Ivete Maibaze, Mozambique’s Minister of Land and Environment on the sidelines of the COP29 Summit in Baku. “This is a project that has been carefully designed in a participatory approach over the past three years and will deliver positive impact for both the people of Mozambique and our planet for the next 60 years.”
The phase one groundbreaking support the wider MozBlue restoration and conservation project which spans 155,000 hectares, an area twice the size of Singapore, and involves training 300 local communities to plant 200 million mangrove trees by 2030 to rejuvenate the region’s vital ecosystems. Over the project’s 60-year lifespan, MozBlue is projected to remove approximately 20.4 million tons of CO2, equivalent to offsetting the emissions of roughly 2.5 million round-trip flights between New York and London, contributing to global climate mitigation efforts. The carbon removal credits will be used to fund local restoration and livelihood activities throughout MozBlue’s 60-year life cycle.
“We are honored to have the opportunity to develop one of the world’s largest blue carbon projects here in Mozambique,” said Vahid Fotuhi, Blue Forest’s Founder and CEO. “Our mission is to deliver lasting impact for the nearly 500,000 people that inhabit our project area. This is why we have adopted a community focused approach which means that the needs of the communities are front and center of how this reforestation project is designed, implemented and monitored.”
Mangroves are renowned for their ability to remove more CO2 than any other tree species, as well as helping protect coastlines against climate disasters and improving fish stocks.