Mozambique's fishers wrote their own ocean rulebook — and the government said yes

In Ilha de Moçambique and Mossuril, 11,000 artisanal fishers and around 1,000 women gleaners now fish under rules they wrote themselves. After a decade of patient work, Mozambique's government approved the country's first community-led fisheries management plan outside a marine protected area — covering 51,530 hectares, with seven no-take reserves protecting 3,164 hectares. The youngest-ever elected leader of the Ilha council, Juma Buanamade, says the plan means his grandchildren will still find fish in these waters.