Empowering Nigeria: building local capacity for marine fauna monitoring and mitigation 

As offshore industries expand, so do the need for the environmental monitoring and mitigation of marine fauna. However, many countries across the world lack the local capacity and skills to deliver this vital work.   

Here, Niru Dorrian, IMarEST ambassador to the UN Ocean Decade, and Morgana Alvarenga, environmental coordinator at BGP Offshore, run us through a UN Ocean Decade endorsed scheme in Nigeria that’s aiming to change this. They also explain how the IMarEST helps its members to gain UN Ocean Decade endorsement. 

Covering 70% of the Earth's surface, the world's oceans are vital for biodiversity, climate regulation, and human livelihoods. Yet, these ecosystems are under unprecedented strain due to human activities, including the expansion of the offshore industries.  

BGP Offshore, a geophysical survey company that operates in marine environments, is helping to address these challenges through its ‘BGP Oceans’ programme, which supports marine conservation, sustainability, and education by funding small-scale initiatives and implementing impactful projects.  

At the end of 2024, the programme reached a new milestone by launching Empowering Nigeria, a project that aims to build local capacity for monitoring and managing marine fauna. The initiative is endorsed by the IMarEST, the Marine Mammal Observer Association (MMOA), and the UN Ocean Decade.  

The Ocean Decade endorsement was achieved with the advice and support of the IMarEST ambassadorial team, which helps our members to gain this important recognition for initiatives across the industry. 

Empowering Nigeria

The Empowering Nigeria initiative is designed to address the operational inefficiencies caused by a lack of local expertise in marine fauna monitoring. It aims to develop a pool of highly skilled Nigerian professionals equipped to contribute to the offshore sector, while prioritising the protection of marine ecosystems.  

There are two critical roles where it is hard to find qualified and experienced professionals in Nigeria - Marine Fauna Observers (MFOs) and Passive Acoustic Monitoring Operators (PAMOs). MFOs visually monitor and document protected marine megafauna, such as whales and dolphins, ensuring compliance with environmental regulations during offshore operations. PAMOs use advanced acoustic technologies to detect marine mammals, providing real-time monitoring data critical for mitigating human impacts.  

The initiative has been providing comprehensive theoretical and practical training in marine fauna monitoring, with a focus on recent graduates in marine biology and related fields. Furthermore, it successfully established partnerships with Nigerian researchers, leveraging their graduate talent pools to identify and prepare motivated candidates for specialised roles. 

As part of the programme, 20 participants received access to training that would otherwise have been financially unattainable. In addition, nearly 70 candidates benefited from free webinars offered with partner agencies and institutes. This inclusive framework promoted diversity across gender, age, and cultural backgrounds, ensuring broader and more equitable representation among qualified marine professionals. 

Award recipients were also encouraged to share their activities and findings through blogs, websites, and social media, ensuring the knowledge gained through training and fieldwork is accessible and discoverable.  

UN Ocean Decade Endorsement 

The IMarEST team supported BGP Offshore to gain UN endorsement for Empowering Nigeria by identifying how the initiative is helping to meet the goals of the UN Ocean Decade. 

The three key areas are: 

• Strengthening Partnerships and Building Capacity - The programme strengthens collaborations among marine professionals, industry bodies, and aspiring MFOs/PAMOs, fostering a global network of marine professionals aligned with Ocean Decade priorities. The initiative targets capacity development by providing access to resources and training, enabling individuals to advance their careers, while addressing the endorsement criteria's focus on building expertise in marine observation fields. 

• Promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity - The programme promotes diversity and equity by offering opportunities to aspiring professionals who may face financial or geographic barriers to entry into the field.  While the programme does not explicitly reference Indigenous knowledge, its scope and emphasis on collaboration and knowledge encourages openness to engage with local and Indigenous communities that may be involved in marine monitoring, mitigation, and protection efforts. 

• Advancing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - The programme aligns with the Ocean Decade's mission to accelerate ocean knowledge and advance the UN SDGs, particularly SDG 14 (life below water). Through focused capacity-building and knowledge dissemination, the programme enhances the professional capabilities of individuals, directly supporting sustainable policy and environmental management. 

Working towards Ocean Decade endorsement 

Our team is available to support our members to seek UN Ocean Decade endorsement for their events. Contact [email protected]  for more information.