During mating season, sea turtles return to the beaches to lay their eggs. At this time, local communities have traditionally hunted the turtles and collected their eggs. To protect the turtles in Benin, the NGO Tropical Nature started a project to work with communities who live near the beaches where turtles lay their eggs. The NGO educated the communities about the importance of turtles and their endangered status. They helped the communities to understand the need to stop hunting the turtles and collecting their eggs. Accordingly, the villages now leave the eggs intact and do not hunt the turtles.
In addition, the NGO worked with the communities to establish community watch groups to monitor the situation and protect the turtles during the day and also during the night. These groups receive compensation for their efforts.
This experience has shown that when communities can participate enthusiastically and independently in conservation efforts when they are sensitized. In addition, this experience highlights the role that NGOs can play in supplementing Governmental efforts to implement MEAs and environmental laws on the ground, especially when the State does not have the resources to devote to effective implementation and enforcement.
For more information, see http://ntong-benin.ifrance.com or contact ntongmu@yahoo.com