Building an Effective Co-management Model for Panama’s Coiba National Park

Coiba National Park, located off the southwestern coast of Panama, is part of the Eastern Tropical Pacific Marine Corridor. It protects Coiba Island, and 38 smaller islands, and the surrounding marine areas within the Greater Gulf of Chiriqui. Fishing pressures impact conservation efforts, necessitating an effective co-management plan for buffer zones surrounding the national park. To build a sustainable model for the management of Pixvae Bay, the Bezos Earth Fund granted $120,000 to MarAlliance through Re:wild. The grant enables the creation of co-management and surveillance committees for the zone, the production and implementation of governance structures, and research on small-scale community fisheries in Pixvae and neighboring Bahia Honda.