Seagrass Expert, Dr Jaqueline Uku, from the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) explaining the difference between seagrass and algae during the World Seagrass Day| Photo Mazera Ndurya
As the world marked World Seagrass Day 2025, on 1 March, Kenya stood alongside the global community to highlight the crucial role of seagrass ecosystems in sustaining biodiversity, mitigating climate change, and supporting local livelihoods.
However, even as scientists espoused its ecological and economic significance, these vibrant marine habitats face mounting threats from human activity and climate change, amplifying the need for coordinated conservation efforts.
Yet, despite the critical role seagrasses play, there is little information in public domain compared to other ecosystems such as mangroves and corals.
According to Dr Jaqueline Uku, a seagrass expert from the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) the world seagrass day is very significant to the community because it shines spotlight on this vital ecosystem.
“The most important function of seagrass is that they are the lungs of the ocean covering about 80 percent of the intertidal zone. They also grow among the coral reefs.
“These are vital ecosystems and when you look at where fishermen put their traps near show they set them in seagrass beds. Many times we assume that seagrass is dirt on the beach but they provide food to crabs. When they break down, the nutrients go back to the ocean so it’s a whole regenerative cycle,” said Dr Uku at the Jomo Kenyatta public beach in Mombasa where the celebrations took place.
Community involvement
Working with the community has been instrumental in the conservation and restoration of seagrass in Kenya’s south coast.
Dr. Uku and her team have long recognized that conservation efforts thrive through community involvement.
In Wasini Island, they partnered with locals to restore two hectares of degraded seagrass. Women took a leading role, adopting innovative restoration techniques that have successfully rejuvenated fish stocks and revitalized the local economy. Community-led initiatives, like those supported by local Beach Management Units (BMUs), have demonstrated that grassroots efforts can drive tangible change.
Muhidin Musa, Chairman of the Wasini BMU, shared how the community’s perception of seagrass transformed.
“We thought seagrass couldn’t be depleted because our fathers always fished just a few meters from home. But as fish stocks dwindled, we understood the connection. Restoring seagrass has brought the fish back, and we see the benefits in our catches and income.”
“We have been trained on a number of conservation work in the ocean one of them being seagrass restoration by the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI). Before undertaking the restoration we carried out a survey and noted that several areas had been degraded,” said Muhidin.
Another community member, Abubakar Ahmed who oversees seagrass restoration Wasini Island said the grasses have been affected by harmful fishing methods.
“All this was happening because of lack of education and awareness but our generation, after getting some training especially through KMFRI. We now know that seagrasses are important assets. There are some fish species that don’t live in corals but in seagrasses. There are also sea urchins, which, apart from eating sea grass, they are food for fish,” he said adding that the areas we have restored seagrass are very green and a beautiful sight to behold.
According to Ahmed, the biggest challenge they are grappling with is climate change. “One thing we have learnt is that when the grass gets degraded we replant to replenish it. Last year we had serious case of coral bleaching which also affected seagrass. Coral bleaching is a result of sea temperature rise which also affects seagrass.”
Dr Uku said: “We have always worked with the community, integrating them in most of our projects. One area where we have worked strongly with the community is seagrass restoration. We have worked in Wasini Island to restore about 2 hectares of seagrass.
“That was a real partnership with the community where we built their capacity. The community was fully involved especially the women. Women were very keen and we developed a restoration method that they adopted and when we went back we found success in those areas.”
Through the capacity building, Dr Uku said the community continues to monitor the areas.
She said they have also worked with communities to set up Local Marine Management Areas (LMMAs) or co-management areas in Vanga.
Growing Momentum for Seagrass Conservation
In recent years, Kenya has demonstrated a strong commitment to safeguarding its seagrass meadows. The Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) has been leading national efforts, working with partners to protect and restore these habitats.
“The other thing we have done is using non-invasive techniques to monitor the fish. In the past we were spending many hours counting the fish but we have now developed tools and by just taking a drop of water and analyze it we are able to tell the profile of the organisms.
“Our work with seagrass has evolved. A new pathway in seagrass is ocean literacy. A pathway for making ocean stories real for children. Seagrass have created a trail for us to talk to the ministry of education with the inspiration and aspiration to influence Kenya’s curriculum,” said Dr Uku.
She added: “We celebrate seagrass today because they have been a conduit to many things and one we would like to see is that of governance. We would like to see seagrasses, mangroves and all blue carbon ecosystem integrated into our policies. They really are a climate asset and we want to see that we can champion with partners so that we begin to value it.”
Seagrasses as a Climate Asset
Seagrasses are powerful carbon sinks, potentially storing even more carbon than mangroves. To quantify their contribution, KMFRI is collaborating with global partners like Pew and Fauna & Flora to map seagrass coverage across the Western Indian Ocean. These efforts will provide the data needed to include seagrasses in Kenya’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in compliance to the Paris Agreement, ensuring their recognition as critical assets in the fight against climate change.
Dr Uku said among the efforts being made in safeguarding seagrass is the Wetland regulation, which is currently under review to ensure that the critical aspects of seagrass are incorporated, aspects of making them a national asset.
“The celebration today confirms their status as national assets. I would like to see a regulation that pulls our minds together,” she said.
John Kiptum, Fauna & Flora Technical Specialist, Conservation Policy, Kenya emphasized the urgency of policy integration: “We want Kenya to recognize seagrasses in national and international policies. Their value for climate mitigation is immense, and we need specific conservation targets for blue carbon ecosystems.”
He said during an interview with Media for Nature in Mombasa: “We want to encourage our main stakeholders to be more concerned with the value of the ecosystems by mainstreaming them with the current policies specifically because of the value on climate change.
“We want to see issues of seagrass given equal importance in terms of conservation and recognition in policies at the county, national and also at the international level.”
Kiptum said because of the value in climate change mitigation, Kenya should recognize the value of this ecosystem in Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) where specific targets are being proposed for seagrass just like other ecosystems especially terrestrial ones.
“For Fauna & Flora together with our partners we want seagrasses to be recognized through policies legal framework so that there are specific measures that go towards effective and sustainable management of the ecosystem.
“Our main concern is Kenya’s NDCs commitment to the Paris Agreement where we want the government to recognize seagrasses. There are some NDCs currently under implementation but there is no specific mention or no much targets for blue carbon ecosystems so we want to encourage the government to give an opportunity to update the current NDC so that more marks are proposed for seagrass and blue carbon ecosystems,” he said.
Louisa Chinyavu, Wetlands International Regional Programme Manager, Eastern Africa, sees this event as a turning point: “Seagrasses have been overlooked for too long. But with more research, community engagement, and policy support, we can change that narrative. In the next five years, I hope we’ll see seagrasses as central to marine conservation, not just an afterthought.”
She said seagrasses are often disregarded plants but what is important is that they weave life into the ocean and therefore it is important to work together with different partners and stakeholders to ensure that when conserving marine ecosystems they are not left out.
“This ecosystem is a prime income generating activity as a basic need because it gives them food. When we work with these communities we give them specific trainings to ensure that whatever they do is aligning to environmental goals, for instance, the Community based mangrove restoration is working and we are hoping that in future we can come up with a similar tool to support seagrass restoration.
“What we are doing now is to know the extent of where they are in the country and we would like this information to reach out to the local people –those involved in marine conservation activities,” she said.
Shaping the Future: Education and Policy
Dr. Uku’s work extends beyond research and restoration — she’s passionate about fostering ocean literacy. KMFRI collaborates with the Ministry of Education to weave marine conservation into Kenya’s curriculum, teaching children the value of seagrasses from a young age. This educational pathway is complemented by policy advocacy, with ongoing efforts to incorporate seagrass protection into Kenya’s wetland regulations.
Some facts about seagrass (source DownToEarth, 11 August, 2020)
Seagrass meadows are important carbon sinks, capable of trapping carbon from the atmosphere 40 times faster than tropical rainforests and storing it for hundreds of years.
Overgrazing, in particular by the collector sea urchin, has been a major factor in how seagrass is distributed along the Kenyan coast. This is because there’s been a fast rise in sea urchin populations which I believe is due to overfishing. Fish, such as the parrot fish, are the natural predators of sea urchins.
When urchin populations are high (about eight or more urchins per square metre), they move in aggregations and can clear seagrass shoots at the rate of five shoots per day per urchin. In Kenya, they have been reported to move in aggregations of up to 137 urchins per 10 square metre, consuming huge amounts of seagrass.
For instance, in Kenya’s north-coast area of Watamu and Malindi about 4.6 per cent of seagrass is lost each year to urchins.
