Saada Juma (L) works with fellow seaweed farmers at Jambiani coast in Zanzibar. Credit: Kizito Makoye/IPS
By Kizito Makoye
JAMBIANI, Zanzibar, Aug 25 2025 – At dawn on the white-sand shores of Jambiani, 45-year-old Saada Juma braces herself against the pull of the tide, wrangling ropes laced with seaweed. Her hands, hardened by decades of labor, move instinctively as she secures her aquatic crop.
“I’ve been farming seaweed since I was a teenager,” she tells IPS, squinting against the morning sun. “This ocean is our life. But for us women, it’s always been a fight to be seen, to be heard.”
Juma is one of thousands of Zanzibari women who sustain the island’s marine economy through seaweed farming, artisanal fishing, ecotourism, and conservation. While their labor underpins Zanzibar’s blue economy—a model that leverages marine resources for sustainable development—many women say the system still disproportionately favors men.
Changing Seas, Unchanged Inequities
Seaweed farming became a prominent source of income in Zanzibar in the 1990s, especially for women. Yet climate change is altering the dynamics of this once-reliable livelihood.
“I started farming seaweed because my mother did it. Now my daughters do it too,” says 52-year-old Mwantumu Suleiman, a seaweed farmer in Jambiani village. “But we’re stuck in the same place. The sea has changed, and we have not been helped to change with it.”
Warming waters and strong tides are making shallow-water cultivation increasingly unviable. But venturing further offshore poses serious risks.
“Most of us don’t know how to swim and even if we did, we don’t have diving gear,” Suleyman says. “So, we pay young men to go for us—if we have the money. Otherwise, we just lose out.”
Tools, Training, and the Gender Gap
On the coast of Jambiani, Juma wades ankle-deep through the surf, examining a torn seaweed rope. She is exasperated.
“These tools are not made for us,” she says, showing a frayed line. “They’re cheap, break easily, and we have nowhere to store or dry the harvest properly. We need better equipment.”
For women like Juma, the work goes beyond survival—it is a path to independence. Yet limited access to financial services, poor infrastructure, and insufficient training have prevented women from reaping the full benefits.
“Seaweed farmers earn the least in the chain, even though we do the hardest work,” she says. “We want to do more—make creams, soaps, drinks—but no one trains us.”
A Blueprint for Gender-Inclusive Growth
To address these imbalances, Zanzibar’s government—supported by UN Women and Norway—launched the Blue Economy Gender Strategy and Action Plan in 2022. The initiative is the first in the region aimed at embedding gender equity in marine policy.
“Women are not just participants; they are leaders in these sectors,” says Asha Ali, a gender advisor who helped draft the strategy. “But leadership requires opportunity, training, and recognition—all of which have been scarce.”
The plan outlines targeted reforms, including skills training, access to credit, and the allocation of designated sea plots to women.
From Tides to Tables of Power
Some women are already pushing for reform from within. Amina Salim, 40, leads a women’s seaweed farming cooperative in Zanzibar and has become a vocal advocate for women’s rights in marine economies.
“I’ve sat in dusty classrooms and government offices to tell our story,” she says. “It’s not just about seaweed. It’s about survival. We are feeding our families, educating our children—and we deserve a better deal.”
Under her leadership, women have petitioned local authorities, secured training opportunities, and begun engaging in policy-making processes.
“We’ve come a long way,” Salim adds. “Five years ago, we had no voice. Today, the government is listening. They’ve promised designated farming zones and better tools. Now, we want action.”
A Sector Under Pressure
Zanzibar’s blue economy accounts for nearly 30 percent of the islands’ GDP and provides employment to one-third of its population. Yet experts warn that the sector’s sustainability is threatened by gender disparities and environmental degradation.
“Women have been sidelined in marine industries for decades,” says Dr. Nasra Bakari, a marine economist at the State University of Zanzibar. “If we empower them—through training, equipment, access to markets—the entire economy benefits.”
Bakari notes that community-driven conservation projects led by women, such as coral reef restoration and ecotourism, hold great promise for sustainable development.
“Let’s not forget—women know the ocean. They’ve worked these shores longer than most. We just need to meet them halfway.”
Charting a Climate-Resilient Path
At the 2025 United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice, France, Tanzania used the global platform to push for aquatic foods as a solution to hunger, climate resilience, and sustainable growth.
“Our survival is intimately tied to the ocean. It feeds us, it employs our people, and it holds the promise to lift millions out of poverty,” said Zanzibar’s Minister for Blue Economy and Fisheries, Shaaban Ali Othman, during a high-level panel discussion.
Highlighting the urgent need to manage marine resources responsibly, Othman detailed how Zanzibar’s blue economy policy has prioritized gender equity and climate adaptation.
“Communities in Zanzibar and along the Tanzanian coastline have fished for generations, but now we must ensure those practices are not just traditional but also sustainable and inclusive,” he said.
Othman also emphasized the importance of value addition and cold-chain infrastructure, noting post-harvest losses remain a major challenge.
“We are piloting aquatic food training centers aimed at supporting youth to acquire and apply climate-smart aquaculture skills, including sustainable pond farming and low-carbon feed techniques,” he said. “This is how we move from potential to prosperity.”
Expanding the Blue Horizon
In parallel, Zanzibar’s Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) initiative—supported by Norway—is mapping marine zones for tourism, shipping, conservation, and fishing. This aims to prevent resource conflicts and ensure environmental protection.
“It’s like a marine land use plan,” says Omar Abdalla, MSP coordinator. “We want to avoid conflicts and protect sensitive areas before they are damaged.”
Still, building trust remains a challenge.
“These maps are made by computers in offices,” says Salim Juma, a sea cucumber diver. “They should come underwater with us. See what’s really happening.”
Omar acknowledges the tension. “We are trying to combine science and traditional knowledge. It’s not easy. But we’re learning.”
Seaweed Innovation and Investment Opportunities
Zulekha Khamis, a 42-year-old farmer in Paje, is among 300 women testing new seaweed farming techniques using floating rafts suited for deeper waters.
“Before, we didn’t know what to do. But now we attend training. We know about climate change,” says Mariam Hamad, leader of the cooperative. “We are not just farmers. We are scientists in the water.”
The group also produces seaweed-based soaps and cosmetics, boosting income and self-reliance.
“We earn more now,” Hamad says. “Some of us can send children to school or build better houses.”
Yet the risk of donor dependency looms large. “If the support goes away, we will go back to struggling,” she cautions.
To address financing gaps, Zanzibar plans to launch a Blue Economy Investment Forum and a Blue Economy Incubator to connect entrepreneurs with ethical investors. But barriers remain.
“Banks don’t understand blue startups,” says Imani Kombo, a 29-year-old ecotourism entrepreneur. “We need patient capital that sees beyond profit.”
A Call for Inclusive Sustainability
Back in Jambiani, Juma ties her final line of seaweed to dry, her eyes on the sea.
“We’ve been patient with promises,” she says. “Now we need results.”
She dreams of building a small factory to process seaweed into cosmetics and health products. “We want to control the full value chain—from the sea to the shelf,” she adds.
As Zanzibar advances its blue economy agenda, the call from women is crystal clear: the sea may sustain life, but without equity and inclusion, the promise of prosperity will remain out of reach.
IPS UN Bureau Report
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