The ‘100,000 Mangroves’ campaign was launched on World Oceans Day, June 8, to contribute to the sustainability of biodiversity and ecotourism. Agriculture ministry
This year’s June 8 World Oceans Day celebrations saw the launch of the “100,000 Mangroves” campaign, which will see mangrove trees planted in 13 fishing communities across Kep and Kampot provinces to support biodiversity and nature-based tourism.
This year’s oceans day was themed “Catalysing Action for Our Ocean and Climate”. The June 8 campaign launch was presided over by Has Sareth, secretary of state at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and held in the Phum Thmey fishing community, in Kep province’s namesake capital.
Sareth highlighted the ocean’s vital role in supporting biodiversity, providing fishery resources as food for people and animals, sustaining ecological systems and contributing to the beauty of nature.
To kick off the “100,000 Mangroves” campaign, 3,000 mangrove saplings were planted in the Phum Thmey community’s fishing grounds. More will be planted in other community fisheries, explained a June 9 statement from the agriculture ministry.
The World Oceans Day event was jointly organised by the provincial agriculture department, Action Aid Cambodia (AAC) and several other partner organisations.
Cambodia has around 60,000 hectares of mangrove forest, located across its four coastal provinces: Kep, Kampot, Preah Sihanouk and Koh Kong. Among them, Koh Kong holds the largest area — over 40,000 hectares.
Fauna & Flora Cambodia, in collaboration with ReMade in Cambodia, also celebrated World Oceans Day, on Koh Sdach island in Koh Kong province’s Kiri Sakor district.
The event aimed to raise awareness among local students about three planetary crises — climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss — through an interactive environmental education session.
“Students learned about the importance and roles of the marine ecosystem and marine biodiversity, the threats they face, and ways to mitigate these threats while protecting valuable marine resources,” explained a joint statement.
A participatory session was also conducted with ReMade in Cambodia to showcase the community-based intervention, which focuses on transforming end-of-life fishing nets into reusable and marketable products.
The organisers hoped these activities would inspire students, local communities and tourism service providers to become stewards of their natural resources, contributing to the long-term conservation and resilience of Cambodia’s precious marine environments.
