New seaweed mariculture project launched with UK support

_{Photo: (l-r) Jalima Gold, President of the Belize Women’s Seaweed Farmers Association and Christine Rowlands, British High Commissioner}

by Charles Gladden

BELIZE CITY, Wed. Dec. 18, 2024

A dynamic woman-led organization – the Belize Women’s Seaweed Farmers Association (BWSFA) – launched its project entitled “Empowering BWSFA: Strengthening Sustainable Seaweed Mariculture through Capacity Building, Marketing, and Innovation,” with the funding of the UK Government’s Sustainable Blue Economies Programme, Blue Social Challenge Fund (BSCF).

Founded in 2019, the BWSFA has been dedicated to developing Belize’s seaweed industry by empowering its members to maximize the production of high-quality, sustainably farmed seaweed and value-added products, fostering livelihoods that uplift communities and enhance climate resilience.

This project addresses the urgent need for environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive solutions in Belize’s blue economy, which has faced challenges from overfishing, unsustainable practices, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are happy to continue our partnership with BWSFA through the Blue Social Challenge Fund. This project will empower local communities to develop Belize’s blue economy, grow its [maricultural] sector, and continue to build climate resilience,” said the British High Commissioner, Christine Rowlands.

“The Belize Women’s Seaweed Farmers Association is driving sustainable livelihoods and biodiversity support through seaweed mariculture, creating an equitable industry model for Belize and the Caribbean,” said Jamila Gold, President of BWSFA.

The key objectives and impact of the program include: Capacity Building – Training members in advanced skills, including Level 2 boat navigation and seaweed-based product development (e.g., soap-making); Farm Expansion – Increasing seaweed farm plots and establishing a seed bank to ensure long-term sustainability; Processing and Marketing – Constructing a mobile processing facility, improving packaging standards, and launching a marketing campaign and outreach; and Community Engagement – Developing ecotourism opportunities through seaweed farm tours to generate income and raise awareness about sustainable practices.

“To work towards this, some of the activities within our project include training our members in skills like advanced boat navigation and making seaweed-based products. We are expanding our farms, setting up a mobile facility to process seaweed, and launching a brand that will focus on Belizean seaweed. This brand will include affordable seaweed-based products for the national market. In addition to these activities, we are also creating the first-of-its-kind seaweed farm tour,” said Gold.

The project is valued at a total of 25,000 Bzd.