MACBLUE Project Concludes in Fiji, Boosting Blue Carbon Knowledge and Climate Action in the Pacific
Partners of the GIZ-implemented Project “Management and Conservation
of Blue Carbon Ecosystems (MACBLUE),” the Ministry of Environment and Climate
Change, the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), the
Pacific Community (SPC), and GIZ gathered in Suva to mark the successful completion of MACBLUE in Fiji.
Implemented across Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu, MACBLUE has significantly advanced the conservation and sustainable management of coastal ecosystems, particularly mangroves and seagrasses, while strengthening regional capacity on blue carbon science, policy, and planning. Since its launch in 2018, it has supported large-scale mapping and monitoring of mangrove and seagrass ecosystems, made possible through SPC’s Digital Earth Pacific (DE Pacific)—a free, open-access digital infrastructure that provides governments, researchers, and communities with decades of satellite data. Through this platform, MACBLUE enabled countries to conduct rapid biodiversity and threat assessments, standardised carbon stock measurements, and national trainings on GIS mapping and carbon assessment. The project also reviewed legal and policy frameworks, supported partner countries in international environmental negotiations, and produced knowledge products and awareness materials to strengthen evidence-based decision-making.
Dr. Sivendra Michael, Permanent Secretary for Environment and Climate Change, highlighted the importance of embedding legal and policy considerations into national environmental action.
To date, the Project has conducted capacity-building workshops in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Fiji, training more than 100 participants on blue carbon assessment, carbon stock measurement, and seagrass and mangrove mapping.