Jazaa, a seaweed farmer from Zanzibar, pulls fully grown seaweed from the...READ ON
Jazaa, a seaweed farmer from Zanzibar, pulls fully grown seaweed from the water for harvesting.
A seaweed farmer in Zanzibar walks through shallow waters to tend to...READ ON
A seaweed farmer in Zanzibar walks through shallow waters to tend to seaweed farms that lie a long way from the shore.
Women work at their seaweed farms in Zanzibar, a Tanzanian archipelago off...READ ON
Women work at their seaweed farms in Zanzibar, a Tanzanian archipelago off the coast of East Africa. Seaweed farming has created a significant shift in gender relations, helping women to leave their homes, earn money and become financially independent.
" We are grateful for the ocean," says Jazaa. She has been...READ ON
" We are grateful for the ocean," says Jazaa. She has been working as a seaweed farmer for almost 10 years. She carefully attaches little seaweed seedlings to a rope that she will harvest in 2 months.
Zanzibar is the third-largest seaweed exporter in the world, with 90% of...READ ON
Zanzibar is the third-largest seaweed exporter in the world, with 90% of its farmers being women.
When the tide recedes, the coast of Zanzibar transforms into a desert, with white sandbanks stretching for miles. The shallow pools, rows of sticks, and hundreds of seaweed farms create a unique landscape. Zanzibar is the third-largest seaweed exporter in the world, with most of it being exported to Asia and Europe, where it is widely used as a base for cosmetics, toothpaste, medicine and food. 90% of seaweed farmers in Zanzibar are women. In traditionally patriarchal communities in Zanzibar, women tend to stay at home and look after their children. Seaweed farming has created a significant shift in gender relations, helping women to leave their homes, earn money and become financially independent. Seaweed can play a vital role in fighting climate change by absorbing carbon emissions, and greenhouse gasses, and regenerating marine ecosystems. Large-scale seaweed farms could clean up oceans, restoring biodiversity and increase the productivity of aquaculture. However, in recent years, the rising temperatures in the Indian Ocean have been killing seaweed due to bacteria called “ice-ice” growing on seaweed, causing it to die. To tackle this problem, marine biologists suggested moving seaweed farms to deeper, cooler waters. This shift to deepwater seaweed farming will require women farmers in Zanzibar to learn how to swim and adapt to the ever-changing seas.
NATALIJA GORMALOVA
Natalija Gormalova is a photographer and filmmaker based in Accra, Ghana.