Executive Summary
Poverty and food insecurity in Coastal East and West Africa contribute to environmental degradation. Medical Care Development International and the Climate Foundation propose Coastal Community Value Chains with Marine Permaculture (CVC-MPs) to increase food security, restore soils, improve health outcomes, and provide economic empowerment.
Locals will lead offshore seaweed production with Marine Permaculture and produce seaweed extract linked to local and international offtake markets to create new income streams. Seaweed extracts and compost will help restore degraded cropland, thereby increasing crop production and farmers’ incomes, while reducing the need to clear more forests.
This missing link for resource efficiency will provide agency and ensure increased health and economic well-being for the population. Marine Permaculture will provide climate resilience to seaweed farms, fisheries, and marine ecosystems. While protecting biodiversity, the revitalization of collapsed fisheries will enhance long-term socioeconomics prospects for millions of local people struggling to survive.
Charity, fund, non-governmental organization, religious institution, school, or other entity
Accomplishments
In 2020, Medical Care Development International (MCDI) leveraged more than 40 years of experience supporting communities around the world to prepare for and respond to infectious diseases and communicable diseases, including epidemics and pandemics. Partnering with public and private sectors, the collaboration forged effective pandemic preparedness and response strategies against COVID-19 in Benin, Cameroon, Cote D’Ivoire, DRC, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Malawi, Niger, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and Zambia.
MCDI also celebrated the successful close out of our two Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) initiatives:
- The Program for Improving Access to Sanitation and Hygienic Practices in Rural Areas (PAPHyR) in Benin, funded by the Global Sanitation Fund (GSF), part of the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC), 2015-2020, and
- In Madagascar, Fonds d’Appui pour l’Assainissessment (FAA), funded by the Global Sanitation Fund (GSF) under the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC), 2010- 2020.
