Mnemba Island Lodge has contributed significantly towards improving the prosperity and living conditions of the local Kijini and Matemwe communities of nearby Zanzibar.
A major conservation coup for CC Africa was the declaration of Mnemba Island and its surrounding reefs as a Marine Conservation Area (MIMCA). This unique partnership between the local communities, the Zanzibar government and CC Africa was established to protect the fragile coral reefs and marine life. A daily levy for all water activities is deposited into a community fund, demonstrating that protecting the marine environment can create revenue.
Chumbe Island Coral Park
Six kilometres south of Stone Town, surrounded by pristine coral reef, Chumbe Island is one of the world's newest and most successful ecotourism projects. In 1994, the reef surrounding Chumbe Island was made Tanzania's first Marine National Park. The island itself, covered with lush mangrove forest, is a designated forest reserve.
Chumbe Island Coral Park won the British Airways Tourism for Tomorrow Award in 1999, in recognition of seven years' conservation work carried out in co-operation with local fishermen, now retrained as marine wardens. Chumbe Island contains a lighthouse, built by the British in 1904 and still operational, a ruined Mosque and the lighthouse keeper's house, now converted into a spectacular education centre and restaurant.
Visitors can come for the day to snorkel over the incredible coral reef, which contains over 90% of all coral species ever recorded in East Africa. The reef, declared the "world's best shallow water coral reef" by the Australian Institute of Marine Science, is home to over 370 species of fish, turtles and dolphins. Guided walks are also available through the island's coral rag forest, interspersed with tidal pools and huge baobab trees, which supports a unique flora and wildlife population including the rare, large coconut crab.
All profits from tourism on Chumbe Island are re-invested into the conservation and education programs operating in the Park, and the island is staffed and managed by local Zanzibaris from the fishing community, with voluntary support from overseas experts.
