Abstract

One of the greatest challenges faced by SIDS in marine management is identifying and procuring sufficient financial and technical capacity to enact real-world management initiatives. Marine managed areas are often criticized for their lack of effectiveness. Several tools exist for assessing the effectiveness of management, such as the Management Effectiveness and Tracking Tool (METT), which not only helps managers to assess the effectiveness of the management, but also allows for the identification of gaps which may be prohibiting the improvement of these assessment scores. While the identifica-tion of these gaps is extremely useful, there is still a need to secure adequate resources to address these gaps. Many funding sources exist, however, finding ones willing to supply funding for needs specific to the locality can often be difficult; with projects often being written to suit the donor's objectives, rather than the requirements of the management authority. The Biodiversity and Protected Area Management (BIOPAMA) programme provides an opportunity to suitably identify and leverage funding to address specific needs which have been identified as priority areas by management organizations. Here, we demonstrate how, through the use of funding, to address priority needs identified in a METT assessment. Primarily through the procurement and acquisition of a marine patrol and research vessel, the Nelson Dock-yard National Park (NDNP) is able to target specific gaps in management, respond to environmental pressures and promote healthier marine ecosystems.

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